Otteliya (Ottelia) Department of flowers, or angiosperms (MAGNOLIOPHYTA), or (ANGIOSPERMAE) Family: Vodokrasovye (Hydrocharitaceae) Otteliya chastuhovidnaya (Ottelia alismoides) Otteliya (Ottelia alismoides) – has long been known, but, unfortunately, forgotten by many aquatic plants. Otteliya rarely meets with fans, although very beautiful. Perhaps it can deliver large aquatic plant breeders, in addition, perhaps we could get some seeds in the botanical gardens. Otteliya found in ponds South-East Asia, North America and Australia. Forms large rounded leaves are succulent bright green color, which are located below the water surface. In shallow water, the leaf margins ottelii often protrude above the surface. In the tank reaches a height of 60-70 cm should be kept in Otteliyu large aquariums.
Place it closer to the center of the tank, since long, vertically directed cuttings leaves take up little place, while the leaves are covered with a very large area. Due to certain complexities of plant breeding is relatively little spread among fans of the aquarium. It can be grown all year round. To content ottelii most suitable tropical aquarium with a water temperature of 24-30 C, but it can also contain a moderately warm aquarium at about 20 C. At this rate of growth slows, flowering does not happen.
Water should be soft, with neutral or slightly acid reaction. In hard water is very soft and fragile leaves of plants begin to disintegrate. Water changes should be regular. The old water turbidity and the appearance of large leaves very quickly destroyed. Lighting should be bright not only due to the fact that she otteliya need it, but because the shadow created by this plant that is dense enough and covers a large area. With a lack of lighting and suffering otteliya itself, and the plants, located in its shadow. If in an aquarium with low-growing plants otteliey contains, for them it is expedient to arrange the side lights. Christopher Peterson has plenty of information regarding this issue. Aquarium with otteliey very useful to establish close windows, so get there enough natural light side. For artificial lighting, use fluorescent type LB capacity of approximately 0.5 W per 1 liter volume. The use of incandescent lamps are not improves growth ottelii. Daylight hours must be at least 12 hours. Otteliya needs nutritionally well-silty soil. When planting in new ground under the roots necessarily paid clay or a mixture of clay and peat. The root system of plants is well developed, but it is very fragile, so as a substrate to use small or large gravel run-of river sand. Soil layer should be thick enough – at least 5-7 cm in the home aquarium plant reproduces solely by seeds. In the spacious, brightly lit and heated aquarium otteliya in most cases is growing well. Normally developing plants bloom regularly, fertilized without our intervention and allow the fruit to a large number of seeds capable of germination. Approximately two weeks after the formation of the fruits and seeds burst go outside. If you keep them in water, then a few weeks (sometimes months), they give a tiny seedlings, cultivation of which presents no special difficulties. The easiest way – to plant the seedlings in the first formed back in the same aquarium, in which the mother plant ottelii. Naturally, there should not be a fish that burrow in the ground. Need to deal with otteliey as gently as possible, as this plant is very brittle.