Bolbitis heudelotii (African water fern): grower data
A West African water fern with translucent green leaves that Tropica rates medium difficulty, with medium light and CO2 demand and slow growth [1]. Tropica says growth increases considerably with added CO2 and is only optimal in soft, slightly acidic water [1].
Grower data
As published by Tropica Aquarium Plants[1]
- Light demand
- MediumTropica: medium light demand is 0.5 W/L.
- CO2 demand
- MediumTropica: medium need 6–14 mg/L; high approx. 15–25 mg/L.
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Difficulty
- Medium
| Type | Rhizomatous |
|---|---|
| Origin (grower) | Africa |
| Height after two months | 15 - 30+ cm |
| Placement | not published by the sources cited |
Name and range
- Accepted name
- Bolbitis heudelotii (Bory ex Fée) Alston[3]
- Family
- Polypodiaceae
- Native range
- Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia and 13 more regions
- Records
- WCVP via GBIF and POWO
What the grower data says
Tropica rates Bolbitis medium on difficulty, light and CO2, with slow growth and a height of 15–30 cm or more after two months [1]. The description adds that the leaves are 15–40 cm tall and wide, and a translucent green [1].
Among the rhizome plants profiled on this site it is the exception: Anubias, Java fern and Bucephalandra ‘Bukit Kelam’ are rated easy, Bolbitis medium (compare them in the parameter table). Two lines in the description explain why. Growth “can be increased considerably” by supplying CO2, and it is “only optimal in soft, slightly acidic water” [1]. Tropica’s fertilizer guide adds that its medium category needs added CO2, roughly 10–15 mg/L [2]. So compared with Java fern or Anubias, which Tropica rates easy and low on both light and CO2, Bolbitis asks for more of both and is sensitive to water chemistry.
What “soft, slightly acidic” means in numbers is not published on the page. The GH guide and hardness converter explain the units, and the CO2 from KH and pH guide shows how KH, pH and CO2 interact.
Placement and planting
Tropica’s advice is the standard one for rhizome plants: it is best planted on a root or stone and held with fishing line until it has gained a hold, and if it is planted in the substrate the rhizome must not be covered, because it will rot [1]. Because a plant on hardscape has no roots in the substrate, Tropica’s guide notes that it can only be fed through the water [2].
Tropica does not name a position in the tank.
Propagation
Tropica describes it as easy to propagate by splitting the horizontal rhizome [1], the same method it gives for Java fern.
Names and taxonomy
Bolbitis heudelotii (Bory ex Fée) Alston is an accepted species in the World Checklist of Vascular Plants, in the fern family Polypodiaceae [3]. It was first described by Bory and Fée as Gymnopteris heudelotii, and its eight synonyms include combinations in Acrostichum, Campium, Chrysodium and Leptochilus [3], the last being the genus WCVP now uses for Java fern.
Tropica describes Bolbitis as coming from West Africa [1]. The checklist’s native range is wider: 27 regions across tropical and southern Africa, from Senegal, Gambia and Guinea east to Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania and south to Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and South Africa’s Northern Provinces [3, 4].
Questions
Does Bolbitis need CO2?
Tropica rates its CO2 need medium and says growth can be increased considerably by supplying CO2 [1]. Its fertilizer guide says plants marked medium need added CO2, about 10–15 mg/L [2].
Can Bolbitis grow in hard water?
Tropica says its growth is only optimal in soft, slightly acidic water [1]; it does not say the plant fails in harder water.
Similar plants
- Anubias barteri var. nana: grower data, planting and namesrhizome, epiphyte / foreground / midgroundLight: LowCO2: LowEasy
- Bucephalandra pygmaea 'Bukit Kelam': grower data and namesrhizomeLight: LowCO2: LowEasy
- Java fern (Microsorum pteropus): grower data and the name changerhizome, epiphyte / midground / backgroundLight: LowCO2: LowEasy
Related guides
- FertilizersCalcium, magnesium and GH for aquarium plantsWhat GH measures, how much calcium and magnesium one degree represents, how Epsom salt and GH boosters change it, and the targets EI, PPS and Aquasabi give.
- CO2 & lightCO2 from KH and pH: the formula, the chart and where it breaksWhere the KH/pH/CO2 chart comes from, why its factor of 3 differs from the temperature-corrected 3.5, and the conditions under which both estimates fail.
- CO2 & lightWhat low, medium and high light and CO2 mean in grower plant dataTropica's light and CO2 ratings, the definitions behind them, the three different CO2 bands on its own pages, and how Aquasabi's categories line up.
Compare it with the other profiled plants in the plant parameter table.
Sources
- Bolbitis heudelotii (plant details, 006XL). Tropica Aquarium Plants. Type, origin, growth, height, light, CO2 and difficulty; description: West African fern, translucent leaves 15–40 cm, plant on root or stone, do not cover the rhizome, split the rhizome to propagate, CO2 boosts growth, optimal only in soft, slightly acidic water. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- Fertiliser and CO2. Tropica Aquarium Plants. Plants marked Medium need added CO2 (about 10–15 mg/L); plants on rocks and roots must be fed through the water. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- Bolbitis heudelotii (Bory ex Fée) Alston: World Checklist of Vascular Plants record (via GBIF). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; dataset published 2026-06-04, CC BY 4.0. Accepted name, family, synonyms, native and introduced range. Accessed October 12, 2026.
- Bolbitis heudelotii: Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Addressed by IPNI identifier 17366050-1; POWO displays the same WCVP data. Accessed October 12, 2026.