Subclass Alismatidae ( Alismatidae )
Order Alismatales ( Alismatales )
Family Araceae ( Araceae )
To be continued…
Genus Anubias — Anubias.
Anubias barteri var. coffeefolia — Anubias barteri var. coffeefolia.
“1” Africa, Liberia, Nigeria, Cameroon, Congo, Gabon. A very beautiful, low-growing variation of Anubias barteri. The plant got its name due to its morphological resemblance to coffee tree leaves. It is characterized by the fact that the central leaf vein and new leaves have a red-brown color. The leaves are simple, asymmetrical, collected in a rosette. The leaf blade is oval-elliptic in shape, leathery, 12 cm long, 6 cm wide, with clearly expressed main and lateral veins. The leaves are dark green, young leaves are reddish-brown. The petiole of the plant is equal to the leaf length or slightly shorter. Height 15-25 cm. Width 10 cm. Unpretentious, durable.
“2” Temperature 20-28°C. Water hardness — very soft to very hard. pH 5.5-8.5. dH 2-20°. Filtration and weekly water changes are required. Diffused lighting is needed, with an intensity of no more than 0.3 W/L. When kept submerged, it needs protection from bright light and direct sunlight, otherwise, it quickly becomes covered with algae and degrades.
“4” A plant rooting in the substrate. Its rhizome is thick, fleshy, sometimes branched, creeping, with cord-like adventitious roots. Prefers a nutrient-rich, humus-rich substrate of coarse-grained sand or fine gravel. Positively responds to root and foliar fertilization. Planted in the ground so that the thick creeping rhizome is not buried and remains on the surface. Only the roots extending from it should be buried, otherwise, the rhizome may begin to rot.
“5” Planted in the foreground and middle ground. When kept submerged, it needs protection from bright light and direct sunlight, otherwise, it quickly becomes covered with algae and degrades. Grows very slowly. Maintenance conditions are very simple. The color combination and leaf shape make this plant very attractive in large and small aquariums. A powerful root system and high leaf rigidity protect this plant from substrate-digging aquarium and terrarium inhabitants and vegetarians. It often blooms underwater, but does not bear fruit. Not eaten by herbivorous fish.
“6” Propagated by dividing the rhizome, which is broken into pieces with 3 leaves. Leafless sections of the rhizome are left floating until roots and leaves appear.
Identification: Anubias barteri coffeefolia — Anubias barteri coffeefolia.
Anubias barteri var. glabra — Anubias barteri var. glabra.
“1” Western and Central Africa, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Congo. It grows along the banks of rivers, streams, and swamps. It can grow out of water or so that the roots are in the water and the shoots are outside. During floods, it is completely flooded with water. Glabra tolerates submersion well, forming picturesque sprawling thickets of shiny lanceolate leaves up to 12 cm long and up to 6 cm wide, sitting on a long strong petiole. The leaf blade ranges from narrow-elliptic to lanceolate-ovate, leathery, neutral green to dark green. The leaf tip is acute or strongly acuminate, the base is obtuse, truncate, or slightly cordate. Young leaves of adult plants have pigment spots. The petiole is strong, sheathing, up to 35 cm long, up to 2-3 mm thick. The rhizome is dense, creeping, sprawling over the substrate.
“2” Water quality should be monitored to prevent rapid algae growth. Slightly acidic water, from soft to medium hardness, at a temperature of 22-26°C is recommended for cultivation. The water must be clean, free from turbidity. Good filtration and weekly water changes are required. Afraid of algal overgrowth. Moderate diffused lighting with an intensity of 0.3 W/L is recommended. Daylight duration is about 10-12 hours.
“4” A plant with a dense, creeping rhizome sprawling over the substrate, up to 8 mm thick. The substrate should preferably be rounded, loose, and at the same time rich in organics. Regular use of root fertilizers is advisable.
“5” In the aquarium, the plant is planted in a group in the background and middle ground (depending on the size of the plant). The plant is quite plastic, easily tolerates changes in conditions, and quickly adapts to a new environment. Due to its hard leaves, it is suitable for aquariums containing cichlids. It grows rather slowly, producing no more than 6 leaves per year.
“6” Propagated by daughter plants that grow from buds on the rhizome or from unopened buds of the rhizome when it is divided.
Anubias afzelii — Anubias afzelii.
“1” West Africa. About 10 forms of Anubias afzelii are found in aquariums. This plant has so many names that it causes some confusion among hobbyists. It grows evenly throughout the year. In natural conditions, leaves with petioles reach 35 cm in height, in an aquarium 20-25 cm. The rosette of an adult specimen bears up to 6-8 leaves 35-45 cm long and up to 10 cm wide, sitting on a long, strong petiole. Leaves are simple, petiolate, in young specimens collected in a rosette, in adults alternate, dark green, ovate-lanceolate, fleshy, their base is narrowed, apex obtusely pointed; the main vein on the upper side of the blade is somewhat depressed, protruding below to form a ridge, lateral veins are weakly visible. Petioles are shorter than the leaves in length. Each plant bears up to 8, rarely more, leaves. The leaves of this plant stay on it for quite a long time and die off only when their number exceeds 10-12 pcs. or conditions do not quite meet their needs. This species of Anubias is widespread among aquarists.
We can meet several outwardly quite noticeably different Anubias fitting this broad description. These are lanceolate ones, differing in the degree of narrow-leavedness.
Let’s call them synonyms of A. afzelii: — A. congensis — height over 50 cm, with a leaf length-to-width ratio of approximately 3. Leaf is smooth, dark green.
— A. lanceolata — a large plant, but with a narrower and relatively lighter leaf, leaf length-to-width ratio 3.5 – 4. On older specimens, large waves may appear on the leaves.
— A. rubescens — similar to lanceolata, but produces young leaves of a red-brown color. Adult leaves are darker and harder than in A. “lanceolata”.
— A. angustifolia — even narrower-leaved, with a leaf length-to-width ratio of 6 – 8. Its height is about 40 cm (in the aquarium), holding many leaves at the same time. Young leaves are also pinkish-brown.
— A. ellipticus — in the aquarium about 40 cm, leaves broadly elliptic, symmetrical in both directions, with slight points at the end and base.
— A. rotundifolia — about 25 cm high, similar to ellipticus, but more compact. The leaf is slightly asymmetrical — it has a slight narrowing at the base and slightly expands and rounds towards the end (tear-shaped).
And although all these differences in length-to-width ratios seem minor, these Anubias differ quite significantly. That is, it can be assumed that today we have 6 varieties of this species widespread. Although, it is quite possible that these are still not subspecies of “pure” afzelii, but hybrid forms based on it.
“2” The plant is not very demanding on maintenance conditions, keep it at a water temperature of 25 to 30°C; in colder water, it almost completely stops growing. Water hardness does not significantly affect its growth pattern, nor does the active water reaction. Constant water changes and maintaining cleanliness in the aquarium are important for Anubias. When organics accumulate on the leaves, growths appear, to which Anubias is very sensitive.
Old leaves quickly deteriorate under such conditions, and the bush retains only 2-3 young leaves as fully functional. Anubias is not very demanding on lighting conditions. Even moderate, diffused light or shading by floating plants is preferred for it, because an excess of lighting causes algae to appear on the leaves, which extremely negatively affects the plant’s condition. Daylight should be about 11-12 hours.
“4” Rhizome thick, creeping, often branched, up to 15 cm thick, with scars from fallen leaves; adventitious roots thick, cord-like. Upon reaching maturity, it forms processes of greater or lesser size depending on the size of the mother bush, but for this to happen, one must be patient, not disturb the bush, and not cut the rhizome into parts. Since this plant has a powerful root system in the form of thick cord-like roots, the composition of the substrate does not matter, but soil fertility is extremely important.
Fertilizers in the water are ineffective for this plant because, due to weak nutrient capture by the leaves, they are absorbed by more “agile” plants. When planting the plant in new soil, nutrient additives must be introduced under the roots. Additions of clay and mixtures of clay and peat are quite suitable. If the plants are sick, clay should not be added to the soil. The soil layer should be thick — up to 10-15 cm.
“5” Solitaire plant. Small specimens 10-20 cm long are suitable for planting, which usually take root underwater better than large plants. It should be kept in a large aquarium, but with a low water level. Anubias is placed in the background; it is recommended to plant it in the most shaded areas to protect the plants from algal aggression. Given its size, due to the vertical arrangement of the leaves, it does not shade too much area and makes it possible to illuminate plants growing next to it and directly beneath it. It grows very slowly in the aquarium.
“6” The fastest propagation is achieved by dividing the rhizome. It propagates using lateral processes on the substrate.
Anubias lanceolata, gilletii, hastifolia, heterophylla.
Anubias barteri nana, Petite, angustifolia, caladiifolia. 
