The Buce plants - Keeping them alive and propagation.

[rivermuse]

The Bucephalandra a.k.a "Buce" plants were very popular at the mini auction. I brought a few myself.  "Mathilda"
Theia Blue" and "Kir Royale". It was sort of an impulse buy - I did not know about these plants, the name sounded familiar.
Thanks OVAS for introducing these to people like myself. Some of the pictures I have seen of these plants in submerged form are very beautiful. Like an Anubias that dropped from heaven.

Here is a layman's summary of what I found about these plants:  I'm writing this not as an education to others but more so to let people know what I know so far.  You may correct me or add further.

Their habitat is mostly confined to region of Borneo (which is spread across Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei). They thrive in damp conditions. This tropical region is very accustomed to heavy rains and flooding of streams - all year round. They are a type of Rhizome plants that thrive directly in rapid waters or close to banks of moving waters where they are subject to frequent flooding (moving waters) and even submerged conditions (with moving waters). They are known to have very strong roots that can hold on to even moss covered rocks, exposed tree roots etc., They related to Anubias family and crypts as well I believe. 

Buy farmed: Apparently there are 100s of varieties of these plants and some still being discovered. The demand for these plants is threatening them to extinction in the wild so there is a push in asking consumers to buy only farmed plants. The only true way to find what plant you have is to wait for them to flower. So if you are a novice like me, make sure you take pictures and videos to "mark" what plants are going where in your tank.

In the hobby, despite their rarity (that is rapidly decreasing) and the cost  - they are considered to be an "easy" plant. However I found this is not entirely true in all cases, there are some varieties that even some biologists are struggling with . Their appearance really comes out in their submerged form.

I hope the above info is close to being correct. I wrote that so you know what I know and can correct me or add to it further.

Please see if you can comment on my thoughts below: 

1. CO2 is not critical to this plant, although it will help thrive. Even High Light does not seem to be critical. But general rules apply if you have High light, CO2 helps and both will certainly help boost growth, appearance etc., - the point is, it is not critical.

2. I found mixed information on water movement. In most cases, they are saying water movement is critical, however some people are growing it in a normal conditions.

3. I planted two in my 10 G and placed a small micro power head near by (it also helps my African ferns). It does not throw direct flow of water on it but there is agitation in its vicinity. One of them is tied to a peice of wood and the other to a rocks. They are in a bit of shaded area though. I'm not sure if I should put it under direct light area (This is not a CO2 tank but has Sat pro light which is pretty strong).

4. I "planted" to on a plastic mesh for now and put in a emersed set up. There is wet, almost slushy organic potting mix soil underneath the mesh where the roots come in contact with. This is in a glass container with lid tight shut with plastic press seal. I'm expecting this humidity not to dry out the leaves. For now I'm spraying twice a day. Concern: There is no flowing water but this is more of a Marsh condition with stangant water and humidity. However people are reporting success in emersed set up. I would think a paludarium is a better choice though.

5. These were sort of expensive (for a small amount of rhizome with few leaves) - so my goal is to ensure their survival at this point. Do you think I should put them in tank instead of #4 ? I'm trying these two methods to see how they do. (I can post pictures if needed). My emersed farm set up with other plants like Eleocharis American (Long variety), Eleocharis Mini, a few others, although the the long variety seems to survive its propagation has been almost dead with on blade growing now and then.


Thanks!

[Gilbotron]

Great writeup! Thanks for sharing!

Note: I've also read that many varieties of this plant are threatened due to development in many regions of its natural habitat.  All the more reason to keep it going in the hobby!

I've been playing with approx. 8-9 varieties of this plant for about a year and one thing is for sure - it is incredibly slow growing no matter how hard you push it (slower than the slowest anubias) - hence the high cost.  I've tried it in numerous tanks/setups and it is near impossible to kill once its climatized to submersed growth. The larger leaf varieties can even withstand rough fish within reason (my 5 inch loaches root around in it and sleep on it).  Most varieties work well in low light, high light, low flow, high flow, etc...  High light and CO2 will increase growth rate, however, because it is still such a slow grower, its important to make sure the tank is well balanced as algae can easily choke this plant out (and/or make it unsightly) if it gets covered, much like anubias.

For me, this plant has done best in low-med light setups (or in shade) attached to rocks and driftwood with normal flow.  Whenever Ive tried higher light, algae has become an issue over time.

Here's hoping you have much success with your Buce and can propagate lots into the community!

[rivermuse]

Thanks Gilborton for sharing your experience. I'm keeping close eye on the emersed set up with some fear of it getting dried up. I will replace the mesh with some lava rock during weekend.

Would like to hear if someone has had experience growing them emersed as well.

[Kalemh]

Most people dont grow the emersed because they usually completely die back and they dont get any of the colors you will see from submerged growth they will usually all just get green leaves

[rivermuse]

Do you know if it will never regain its color and stay green after reintroducing to water? I guess I will move them all into water.

[Kalemh]

The leaves you have grown emersed will either stay green or melt off but any new leaves that come in will have the submerged colours of your bucephalandra species

[rivermuse]

Thanks Kalem I did not realize that they actual die and regrow during water acclimatization. I see people on some boards asking people not to throw away the rhizomes and just wait - that must be why. I'm going to put them on rock and transfer them to an aquarium over the weekend.