Hygrophila pinnatifida
Hygrophila pinnatifida
Also known asPinnate hygrophila · Fern-leaf hygro · Brown hygrophila
Water parameters
Light and nutrients
Substrate type: inert ok. Propagation: lateral shoots, can attach to hardscape.
Substrate compatibility
| Substrate | pH effect | Nutrient load |
|---|---|---|
| Wood and rock mounts (Hardscape mount) | varies | none |
| Aquasoil (ADA Amazonia) | lowers pH | very high |
| Mineralized clay substrate (Seachem Fluorite) | neutral / inert | moderate |
| Inert sand (Pool filter sand) | neutral / inert | none |
With fish
Origin and habitat
A distinctive stem plant of the acanthus family, Acanthaceae, Hygrophila pinnatifida, native to India and described from the Western Ghats, where it grows attached to rocks in fast streams and rivers. It is unusual among aquarium plants for two things: its deeply lobed, fern-like (pinnatifid) leaves, brown-green above and maroon-purple below, and its dual habit of growing either rooted in substrate or fixed to hardscape like an epiphyte. It spreads by horizontal runners that creep over surfaces and bud new rosettes at the nodes, letting it climb rock and wood for a layered, naturalistic look unlike any other aquarium stem plant. Brought into the hobby in the 2000s from Indian collections, it became a competition favourite for its leaf shape and versatility, and is now widely sold as tissue culture.
Care notes
Moderate care, and unusually it thrives whether planted in substrate or attached to hardscape. Rooted, it makes a rosette of lobed leaves and runs along the substrate; tied to rock or wood with thread, line or glue, it creeps across and roots into crevices, taking hold within a few weeks, and the base or rhizome should not be buried, which rots it. Give it moderate to high light for eight to ten hours to keep the brown and maroon colour and well-defined lobes; in dim light it fades to dull green. CO2 is not essential but improves growth and colour, and iron plus a full trace mix supports the red undersides. Because it is often mounted high on hardscape, those red undersides become a feature. Growth is moderate, faster under strong light and rich water, so trim runners that stray and replant or remount the pieces. It is somewhat sensitive to hard water, doing best in soft to moderately hard. In aquascaping it bridges foreground and background by climbing midground stone. It is an ornamental, not a crop, so it is unsuited to media-bed aquaponics or hydroponics.