Dwarf lily
Nymphaea nouchali
Also known asDwarf red lily · Star lotus · Nymphaea stellata (synonym)
Water parameters
Light and nutrients
Substrate type: nutrient rich. Propagation: bulb.
Substrate compatibility
| Substrate | pH effect | Nutrient load |
|---|---|---|
| Aquasoil (ADA Amazonia) | lowers pH | very high |
| Mineralized clay substrate (Seachem Fluorite) | neutral / inert | moderate |
| Dirted tank (mineralized topsoil) (DIY soil substrate) | slightly acidic | very high |
With fish
Origin and habitat
The aquarium 'dwarf lily' is Nymphaea nouchali (family Nymphaeaceae), long sold under its synonym Nymphaea stellata; it also goes by blue or star lotus, red water lily and, in Sri Lanka, manel. It is native across a broad band from Afghanistan and the Indian subcontinent through Southeast Asia to Taiwan and Australia, in still ponds, slow rivers and floodplain pools. The plant grows from a bulb and, submersed, makes triangular to arrow-shaped leaves in deep red, bronze, purple-brown or pinkish-green on short stems, which is its main draw in tanks. Left alone it pushes long petioles to the surface and opens round floating lily pads, green above and red beneath. It should not be confused with the 'tiger lotus' of the trade, which is a different species, Nymphaea lotus or N. zenkeri.
Care notes
Plant the bulb with only its base in the substrate, burying no more than the bottom quarter or so, since a fully buried bulb rots; new leaves appear in a week or two. Light drives the colour: moderate to high light, around PAR 50 for eight to twelve hours, deepens the submersed leaves to red, while low light leaves them greener and bronzer. CO2 is not needed but speeds growth and intensifies colour, and chelated iron, from root tabs or liquid dosing, supports the red pigment. The plant naturally wants to reach the surface and form floating pads that shade everything below, so most keepers snip the petioles of surface-bound leaves to keep it producing the prettier submersed foliage; never let to the surface, it stays a compact, colourful bush. Growth is moderate to fast in good light, helped early by the bulb's stored energy, which fades after a few weeks so ongoing light and feeding matter. Propagate from daughter plants on the runners it throws when thriving, or from seed if it flowers. It tolerates a wide range of water, roughly pH 5.5 to 8 and soft to moderately hard, at about 22–28°C. It makes a striking red-and-green centrepiece without the constant trimming red stem plants need. It is an ornamental, not a crop, so it is unsuited to media-bed aquaponics or hydroponics.