Broadleaf anubias: the bigger, bulletproof epiphyte
Anubias barteri
The full-size cousin of anubias nana — and just as hard to kill.
Where it comes from
Anubias barteri comes from the rivers and streams of West Africa, where it grows on rock and submerged wood, often in shade. It is an epiphyte — a plant that anchors to surfaces rather than rooting in soil — which is the key to keeping it.
What to expect
Where Anubias nana is small and low, barteri is the full-size plant: thick, leathery, spade-shaped leaves on stout stalks rising from a creeping rhizome, often reaching 20–30 cm tall. Several popular varieties exist, including the compact 'Nana', the broad 'Broad Leaf', and the wavy 'Coffeefolia'. All share the same bulletproof care.
How to keep it
Anubias asks for almost nothing: low light, no CO2, no special substrate. Its one rule is the rhizome — the thick horizontal stem the leaves grow from must stay exposed to the water. Bury it and it rots. Tie or glue the plant to wood or rock, leaving the rhizome sitting on the surface.
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Lighting | Low to medium — bright light invites algae on leaves |
| CO2 | Not required |
| Temperature | 22–28 °C |
| pH | 6.0–7.5 |
| Hardness | Soft to hard |
| Fertiliser | Light water-column feeding |
| Substrate | None — attaches to wood or rock |
| Growth rate | Slow |
| Placement | Midground, Background, Attachment |
| Difficulty | Easy |
Where it works and how to spread it
Because it needs no substrate, Anubias barteri goes anywhere you can wedge or glue it — midground stones, a driftwood branch, the shaded base of taller plants. Propagate by cutting the rhizome into pieces, each with at least three or four leaves; each piece grows on as a new plant.
What goes wrong
Two things trip people up. The first is burying the rhizome, which causes it to soften and rot — keep it exposed. The second is black brush algae, which loves to colonise Anubias's slow, long-lived leaves in bright or nutrient-unstable tanks. Keep it shaded, keep CO2 and nutrients stable, and wipe or remove badly affected old leaves.
More plants in this series
- Anubias nana — the compact low-growing cousin
- Java fern (Leptochilus pteropus) — the other bulletproof epiphyte
- Bucephalandra — the slow iridescent epiphyte
- Cryptocoryne wendtii — the easy low-light rosette