Anubias

About Anubias

Anubias is a slow-growing African epiphyte with thick, dark, armor-like leaves that algae eaters can't damage and low light can't stop. Because it feeds from the water column through its rhizome, it never needs substrate — tie or glue it to driftwood and stone, or buy it pre-mounted. Nana stays compact for midground work, petite is the nano-tank classic, and larger varieties fill background corners. It's also one of the few plants that flowers fully underwater. Slow growth is the trade: an Anubias doesn't transform a tank overnight, it anchors it for years. Available as bare-root specimens, potted plants, or conveniently pre-attached to natural driftwood and porous lava rock, Anubias provides immediate structural elegance and durable green foliage to any freshwater layout.

Anubias FAQs

Why can't I bury an Anubias rhizome?

The rhizome — the thick horizontal stem the leaves grow from — needs water flow across it to survive. Buried in substrate, it suffocates and rots, and the whole plant dies from the middle out. Plant only the thin roots if you must anchor it in substrate, leaving the rhizome fully exposed, or skip substrate entirely and attach it to hardscape with thread or gel super glue. Mounted is how Anubias wants to live.

Why is algae growing on my Anubias leaves?

Slow growth is the culprit: each leaf lives for years, giving algae a permanent surface to colonize, especially under strong light. Keep Anubias in shaded areas of the tank, shorten your photoperiod, and add algae grazers — nerite snails and otocinclus clean the tough leaves without harming them. A little green on old leaves is normal in any healthy tank.

How fast does Anubias grow?

Roughly one new leaf every few weeks under low-tech conditions — this is a marathon plant. The upside of slow: it never needs trimming, never takes over, and never crashes from neglect. Feed with a liquid fertilizer for steadier output.