Fast
High
Moderate
- Plant Type:
- Stem, rhizome or creeping stem
- Size:
- One of the smallest aquarium plants with Size: 2-3 cm (1-1.5in)
- Carbon Dioxide (CO2):
- 20 to 40 mg/l
- Temperature:
- 4 to 30 °C / 22 to 26 °C (optimal)
- Placement:
- Foreground
Glossostigma elatinoides is a very low-growing lawnlike aquarium plant with creeping runners and spatula-like leaves that grows emersed to totally submersed in bogs and flood areas as well as on river banks and lakeshores in its native habitats in Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand. Takashi Amano became aware of the hitherto rather unknown plant in 1980. He imported it to Japan via the aquatic plant nursery Dennerle and created the first Nature Aquaria layouts with low-growing carpets of Glossostigma. Meanwhile, Glossostigma elatinoides has become one of the most popular foreground plants in all the world.
It is possible to confound Glossostigma elatinoides with small submersed waterclovers (Marsilea). However, the creeping runners of Glossstigma have opposing leaves (2 leaves per node), those of Marsilea are alternate (1 leaf per node). Moreover, Glossostigma leaves posses a distinct midrib, whereas the veins of Marsilea are fan-shaped, comparable to the leaves of a Ginkgo tree.
There is another Glosso species, closely related to G. elatinoides, Glossostigma diandrum. Its flowers have two stamina, those of G. elatinoides have four.