# What are these background plants?



## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

I wonder what are these background plants. Both are rather fast growing and very easy to keep. Just have to remember to trim every now and them before they turn the tank into a jungle blocking the light.


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

Maybe the following is a clearer photo.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi totziens,

The right rear one looks like it could be Hygrophila lancea. The one on the left the leaves look wider so it may be a different species.


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

Thanks, Roy. It does not look like Hygrophila lancea to me. Let me try to shoot the photos again.


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## Yo-han (Oct 15, 2010)

The right one looks like Heteranthera dubia or maybe H. zosterifolia. The other one a Hygrophila but maybe a closer picture would help


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

Heteranthera dubia - I think that's the most likely candidate. It looks very similar. A friend of mine got it from Vietnam if I remember correctly.

I'll take close-up photos this weekend.

Thanks a lot, Yo-Han.


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## asukawashere (Mar 11, 2009)

I don't think it's either of the Heteranthera species available to the hobby - both have alternate leaves and your plant has multiple leaves at each node (whether they're opposite or whorled, I'm having a hard time distinguishing, but from the look of it there might be a bit of both).

In any case, I'd tentatively place both plants in the family Acanthaceae (which includes Hygrophila and Staurogyne, among others), and the left as a Hygrophila of some sort, but can't say much more without a sharper photo. If you could try and get some photos that show structural details like the nodes and the veins in the leaves, it would be especially helpful.


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## Yo-han (Oct 15, 2010)

Well noticed, what about Callitriche terrestris?


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## miremonster (Mar 26, 2006)

Yo-han said:


> Well noticed, what about Callitriche terrestris?


 AFAIK the C. terrestris is primarily kept by hobbyists in the U.S. where the plant was collected few years ago. Rather unlikely that it is available in Malaysia.
It seems that the plant in the right corner of totziens' tank has ca. 3-4 leaves per node. Callitriche only 2.
My guess: Pogostemon stellatus 'Octopus'.
http://www.aquaplantexchange.nl/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=7423
But more detailed pics of the plant would be fine.


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

Don't worry, I'll shoot individual photos of the plants closer this weekend instead of making all of you guessing. Thanks for your attempt. Really appreciate it.


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

Here are some of the photos which I believe can provide better view of the plants.


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

Here's the second type of plants:


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

So, does anybody has any idea about the IDs of those 2 plants?


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

The first type looks like Hygrophila polysperma 'Ceylon' to me. What do you think?


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## asukawashere (Mar 11, 2009)

First one looks more like Hygro sp. 'Bold' to me. The second one is probably what miremonster suggested, a variant of P. stellatus.


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

Thanks, asukawashere.

Pogostemon stellatus 'Octopus' - yes, it looks like the second one.

The first one looks like Hygrophila but I still cannot fully distinguish which type. I just think Hygrophila polysperma 'Ceylon' looks like it but I cannot be sure due to colour difference even though the leaves are similar. As for 'Bold', I have never seen mine with maroon/purple colour, so I am a bit skeptical. I have seen mine with yellow and green leaves only.


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## miremonster (Mar 26, 2006)

totziens said:


> Pogostemon stellatus 'Octopus' - yes, it looks like the second one.


 I agree.


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## miremonster (Mar 26, 2006)

To me the Hygro looks indeed like the H. polysperma 'Ceylon' in the Plantfinder: http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/plantfinder/details.php?id=147
In the Kasselmann book (2010, German edition) a narrow-leaved Hygrophila polysperma form from Thailand is depicted, looking alike.
But I know too little about differences between 'Ceylon' and the similar 'Tiger' and 'Bold'.


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

Thanks. miremonster.

Yeah, the Hygrophila confuses me too. It is hard to tell because the colour could be slightly different from the ones posted on the web but a few of the Hygrophila photos from different species look similar to it at the same time (I don't know whether the owners misidentify them or not in the first place). This Hygrophila was originally a sample taken from an aquatic farm (emersed form) if I remember correctly. It happened to spread like wild fire in my friend's tank. So, I got a sample from my friend


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## Yo-han (Oct 15, 2010)

I've Pogostemon stellatus 'Octopus' in my tank, but the leaves are much thinner. Also I only count two leaves per internode...


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## miremonster (Mar 26, 2006)

Yo-han said:


> I've Pogostemon stellatus 'Octopus' in my tank, but the leaves are much thinner. Also I only count two leaves per internode...


Curious... do You have a photo of Your plant? How long and broad are the leaves? Are there some teeth on the leaf margin?


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