My biotope aquarium

Nymphaea lotus zenkeri

Common names: Tiger water lily

Care: medium demanding (4/10)

Family: Nymphaeaceae

Illumination: medium to strong, ( 0.5 w / l or 20 lumens / l)

Size: It grows from 20 to 80 cm

Water conditions: pH 5 - 8, kH 6-18, Temperature 22-28 ° C

Reproduction: Reproduction of the tiger water lily is not the easiest, but not impossible. If you allow the plant to form enough surface leaves, it can eventually create a beautiful lily flower from which you can pick the seeds as they ripen. Another option is to divide the bulb, which the plant takes care of itself, the young bulb, when it shoots a few young leaves, is simply separated and planted separately.

Color: from green - red to brown

Source: Algeria; Angola; Benin; Botswana; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cameroon; Central African Republic; Chad; Colombia; Congo; Ivory Coast; Egypt; Eswatini; Ethiopia; Gabon; Gambia; Ghana; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; Kenya; Madagascar; Malawi; Mali; Mauritania; Mozambique; Niger; Nigeria; Rwanda; Senegal; Sierra Leone; Somalia; South Africa (Mpumalanga, Limpopo Province, KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng); Sri Lanka; Sudan; Tanzania; Go; Uganda; Zambia; Zimbabwe

Biotope / habitat: Inland waters and wetlands.

Growth: The plant needs a rich substrate to grow. Pruning is the key to a beautiful plant. As with all related plants, the leaves of the tiger water lily try to find the top of the aquarium and create surface leaves. These can be very decorative and can even lead to beautiful flowers, but they change the look of the plant. To prevent the formation of surface leaves, be sure to cut off leaves that come too close to the water surface.

One of the problems that many aquarists face is that the plant simply becomes too large. With a supply of lots of light, Co2 and fertilizer, this plant can grow quite large and take over the entire aquarium. Pruning can help, but we can avoid this problem by planting the bulb in a pot.

The plant can go dormant and shed all its leaves if temperatures are too low.
Planting: Planting this plant is slightly different from planting most other aquarium plants. This water lily grows from a small bulb that is often sold and / or shipped without leaves. When planting this bulb, be careful not to push it all the way into the base, as the bulb may rot. Instead, push it about 2/3 deep and let the rest stick out of the base.

Special features: When the plant makes floating leaves, the plant can also bloom. The flower on the surface emits a pleasant scent, which only opens at night.

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