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Stem Plants

Red cabomba

Cabomba furcata Schult. & Schult.f.

A fine-leaved red to purple Cabomba from tropical America; light is the key factor (about 0.8 W/L or more), and it is hungry for nutrients and benefits greatly from CO2. Difficult, but fast-growing in good conditions.

Check your local laws. Australia (Queensland): All Cabomba species other than C. caroliniana, including C. furcata, are prohibited invasive plants under Queensland's Biosecurity Act 2014. EU: No source found listing C. furcata on the EU list of invasive alien species of Union concern; the 2016 list names Cabomba caroliniana only. Later additions to the EU list were not checked. Invasive elsewhere: Spreading as an invasive aquarium escape in Kerala (India) and Sri Lanka. Never throw it into ponds, rivers or drains.

Needs

Care levelHard
LightHigh
CO₂Helps
GrowthFast
HeightUnknown
Temperature24–30 °C
WhereBack of the tank
Feeds throughLeaves, from the water
FamilyCabombaceae
Native toTropical America: Central America (Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama), Cuba, Trinidad and northern and central South America (Colombia, Venezuela, the Guianas, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil); introduced in Peninsular Malaysia and Sri Lanka
Facts checked against sources on 16 Oct 2026. See sources

How to keep it

  • Very bright light (about 0.8 W/L or more)
  • Nutrient-rich substrate plus liquid fertiliser with micronutrients, nitrate and phosphate
  • CO2
  • Low light (shoots weaken and fall apart)
  • Nutrient shortage (darker leaves, slow growth, long gaps between leaves)

Sources

15 facts checked with sources