Lagenandra meeboldii "Rot" ("Red")

°C
°dKH
Aquarium suitability: yes
Usage: Accent (red), Midground, Specimen plant
Difficulty: easy
Growth: slow
See also: Lagenandra meeboldii "Grün" ("Green") , Lagenandra meeboldii "Pink"

General

Range and localities: 

Southwestern India


Height: 10 - 20 cm
Width: 15 - 30 cm

Availability [?]: 
  • occasionally available commercially
  • occasionally available from other aquarists

Misapplied names: 
  • Lagenandra meeboldii 'Pink'

Habit, plant type:

  • rosette
  • rhizome or creeping stem
Botanical name [?]: Lagenándra meebóldii (Engl.) C. E. C. Fisch.

Major group (unranked): Seed plants: Flowering plants (Angiosperms)
Order: Alismatales
Family: Araceae
Genus: Lagenandra

Description: 

Lagenandra meeboldii originates from the south-Indian states Karnataka and Kerala on shaded marshy riverbanks up to a height of 1200 m above sea level.1
This Lagenandra is very variable, there are forms of different size, leaf form or colour. A green and a red variety have been in emersed cultivation in botanical gardens and as paludarium plants by some hobbyists for quite some time. However, the insight that at least the red variety can be kept continually submersed in the aquarium is a rather new one.1 It is probable that some other forms of L. meeboldii are suitable aquarium plants.

In the USA, Lagenandra meeboldii 'Pink' is known as high-growing aquarium plant. According to photos in internet forums, its emersed and submersed form seems to have more longish and larger leaf blades than the red form of L. meeboldii known in Europe, whose leaves have an ovate form and a slightly heart-shaped leaf blade basis. It is not clear whether 'Pink' is another form or whether its different look results from different cultivation conditions and the age of the plants.

To be continued...

References and further reading:
  1. Kasselmann, Christel (2010): Aquarienpflanzen. 3rd edition. - DATZ Aquarienbuch, Ulmer Verlag: p. 382.

Design

Aquascaping: very colourful plant for accents

Culture

Light medium to high 
Temperature tolerance 12 to 28 °C
Optimum temperature 22 to 26 °C
Carbonate hardness 0 to 14 °dKH
pH value 6 to 7.5 
Carbon dioxide (CO2) 15 to 40 mg/l
Nitrate (NO3-) 10 to 50 mg/l
Phosphate (PO43-) 0.1 to 3 mg/l
Potassium (K+) 5 to 30 mg/l
Iron (Fe) 0.01 to 0.5 mg/l

Growth: slow

Propagation: Rhizomteilung, Splitting, cutting off daughter plants

Can grow emersed?: yes

Suited for outdoor cultivation / ponds: no

Winter hardiness: not hardy in Germany

There is no detailled information for cultivating this plant yet.