Ulvaceus Aponogeton

The leaves are translucent, bright green, and crinkled along the edges in a way that makes them look more like a marine algae than a flowering plant. Aponogeton ulvaceus is a bulb plant from Madagascar, and some forms have a dormant period when new leaves stop appearing.

During the growth phase it is one of the fastest background plants. Allow room for the large leaves and spreading rosette. It needs room — plant it in the middle or back of a tank of at least 100 litres, not in a nano tank.

Water chemistry should be soft and acidic: pH 4.5 to 7.5, temperatures 24 to 28 °C. CO₂ injection speeds growth but is not essential; what matters more is that the bulb is not buried too deep. Press it into the substrate so the growing tip is exposed.

Propagation is by seed only — the plant produces a flower spike at the surface if conditions are right.