Red Root Floater

Phyllanthus fluitans

A floating plant with heart-shaped leaves and crimson roots hanging beneath. Under strong light the leaves themselves turn red — the only floater in the catalogue that does that.

Light: low
Difficulty: medium
Height: 3 – 5 cm (1.2 – 2 in)
Temperature: 18 – 30 °C (64 – 86 °F)

Leaf colour: green, red +1 green, red, bronze or brown
Plant type: stem plant
Growth rate: fast
CO₂ demand: low
Tolerates light: medium – high
pH: 5 – 8
Carbonate hardness: 0 – 14 °dKH
General hardness: 0 – 30 °dGH
Placement: surface
Propagation: fragmentation, cuttings +2 fragmentation, cuttings, division, daughter plants
Grows emersed: yes

Appearance

Small water-repellent leaves lie on the surface in rosettes, hiding the stem; the roots are a striking blood red. In bright light the leaves take on bronze and red tones, in shade they stay plain green.

Keeping

Easy in an open tank and awkward in a closed one: drops of condensation sit on the water-repellent leaves and rot them. It multiplies fast, so a share goes in the bin every week, and it dislikes strong surface movement — under a filter outflow the leaves get pushed under and drown.

Placement

On the surface, ideally in a calm corner. The red roots are worth looking at, and the shade underneath suits plants that dislike bright light.

Propagation

By itself: side shoots break off and become new plants. Simply scoop out the excess.

Water conditions match

The water suits 1033 of 1249 species in the catalogue — these are the ones people look up most often.

Swordtail Guppies Cobra Guppy Blood Red Molly Butterflyfish Red Zebra Cichlid Julii Corydoras Featherfin Synodontis Red-finned Parotocinclus Gastromyzon monticola Egg-shaped Goldfish Flame Tetra Gardner's Killifish African Tetra Kenyi Cichlid Cuckoo Catfish Golden Swordtail Hypsolebias picturatus Common Zacco Labeo Bicolor Gambusia Flying barb Gastromyzon scitulus Albino Zebra Danio Geophagus Brokopondo

Will eat this plant

These species damage plants, especially when their diet is short of vegetable food.

Bengal Loach Zebra Loach Burmese Border Loach Emperor Botia Marbled Headstander Pellegrin's Leporinus Leporinus striatus False Black Tetra Common Metynnis Mylossoma duriventre Red Whiptail Catfish Molly sphenops Balloon Molly Lyretail Molly Marble Molly Hi-Fin Platy Hawaii Platy Blue Platy Pintail Platy Black Platy Chocolate Molly Moonlight Gourami Melanotaenia parva

Matching water does not mean the fish will leave the plant alone.

The same plant with a different look: light, water and care are shared with the species.

Other varieties: Phyllanthus Fluitans Red Root Floater

Scientific and other names, conservation status

Other scientific names: Diasperus fluitans, Phyllanthus fluitans
Phyllanthus fluitans: Benth. ex Mull.Arg.
Family: Phyllanthaceae

Red Root Floater

Tank conditions

Care and keeping