Anubias Lanceolata - Potted

Anubias Lanceolata (Anubias heterophylla 'Lanceolata') is the narrow-leaf form of the same species we sell as Congensis, and the contrast is the whole point: where Congensis is broad and substantial, Lanceolata sends up long slim strap leaves that fan out and read almost like a soft background grass. It grows on a creeping rhizome, wants no CO2 and no special substrate, and carries the same leathery toughness the genus is bought for. Browse the rest of our live freshwater plants to fill in around it.

Care Guide

• Never bury the rhizome. The thick horizontal stem the leaves and roots grow from must sit in open water. Buried, it rots and the plant follows. Tie or glue it to wood or rock, or rest it on the substrate with only the roots below the surface.
• Light: low to moderate. Anubias grows slowly regardless, so surplus light feeds algae on the leaves instead of the plant. Green spot algae on older leaves means dial the light back or shorten the photoperiod.
• CO2 and fertilizer: neither is required. A general water column dose of Seachem Flourish keeps new leaves coming and the green deep, but this plant survives plain water and modest light.
• Water: 72 to 82°F, pH 6.0 to 7.5, soft to hard. Genuinely undemanding.
• It arrived grown above water. Nursery pots are raised emersed, so remove the pot and peel the rockwool off the roots before planting. Rinse, trim mushy roots, and expect some older leaves to melt over the first couple of weeks as it converts to submersed growth. The new leaves are the ones that stay.
• Growth rate: slow, a new leaf every few weeks. Give it time to reach full height, and never trim it on a schedule.

Specifications

Placement and Companions

Where it goes: along the back glass in tanks 29 gallons and up. The narrow leaves let light through in a way broad-leaved Anubias does not, so it screens the background without walling it off.

The obvious partner is Congensis. Anubias Congensis is the same species in its broad-leaf form. Planted together they look like two different plants while needing exactly one care routine. Add Anubias Nana at the front and Anubias Barteri in the middle for a full gradient.

Fish and invertebrates: safe with everything, including the plant eaters. Goldfish, African cichlids and silver dollars ignore the tough leaves, and shrimp and snails graze the surfaces without damaging them.

Recommended Supplies

• Seachem Flourish: water column fertilizer for deep green leaves and steady new growth.
• Fritz aquaADHERE Aquarium Glue: the fast way to mount the rhizome on hardscape.
• Malaysian Driftwood: a mounting surface tall enough to suit a background plant.
• Anubias Hastifolia: the arrowhead-leaved giant, for a third leaf shape at the back.
• Seachem Flourish Tabs: root tabs for the rooted plants around it.

FAQ

Is this the same plant as Congensis?
Same species, different form. Both are Anubias heterophylla. Congensis is the broad-leaf form and Lanceolata is the narrow one, and side by side in a tank nobody would guess they are related. Care is identical.

Why do suppliers call it lanceolata if that is not a species?
Anubias lanceolata was described as its own species long ago and later folded into A. heterophylla. The trade kept the old name as a form label because it usefully tells you which leaf shape you are buying.

My leaves are turning yellow and mushy.
Check the rhizome first. It has to sit in open water, not down in the gravel. Second most common cause is rockwool left wrapped around the roots after planting.

How tall does it actually get?
Ten to fourteen inches once established. Anubias is slow, so a fresh pot takes several months to fill out to that.