''Aponogeton capuronii'' (named after

René Paul Raymond Capuron René Paul Raymond Capuron (20 October 1921 – 24 August 1971) was a French botanist. He was responsible for an extensive amount of work on the tree flora of Madagascar. Several plants with the Botanical name#Binary name, species epithet of ''capu ...

) is an

aquatic plant Aquatic plants, also referred to as hydrophytes, are vascular plants and Non-vascular plant, non-vascular plants that have adapted to live in aquatic ecosystem, aquatic environments (marine ecosystem, saltwater or freshwater ecosystem, freshwater ...

found in southeastern

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

Description

''Aponogeton capuronii'' has a

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome ( ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and Shoot (botany), shoots from its Node (botany), nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from ...

up to 10 x 2-cm thick. Leaf blade 7–20 cm long petiolate, slightly leathery, 20–40 cm long and 3-4.5(-8) cm wide, flat or highly bullate and undulate, dark olive-green coloring. Apex acute, base round, cuneate or slightly cordate. Peduncle 40-60(-300) cm long, swollen toward the inflorescence. Spathe up to 1.5 cm long, caducous. Inflorescence with 2, seldom 3 up to 14 cm long spikes with omnilateral flowers; 2 white tepals; 6 stamens; 3-4 carpels with 2(-4) ovules each. Fruit about 6x3 mm in size, with a terminal beak. Seeds up to 3.25 x 1.5 mm in size, simple testa (van Bruggen, 1985).

Culture

A decorative ''Aponogeton'', though with limited adaptability to living conditions in the aquarium. It was imported on a few occasions, but successful cultivation was the exception. A specimen featuring bullate leaf blades has been cultivated successfully for more than 20 years by J. Bogner in the Botanical Gardens Munich. The plant is kept in soft, weak acid water in a shaded location. According to this data, ''Aponogeton capuronii'' does not require a specific rest phase.

Ecology

The species grows in rivers with fast-flowing water. In February 1968, Bogner discovered plants in the Mandromondromotra River (Madagascar) in a depth of 20–30 cm. When the author visited this location in December 1986, the river had a water level of nearly 2 m. The plants had hardly any juvenile leaves, which hinted at limited growth activity. ''Water values of this location were as follows:'' temperature 27.3 °C (air 30 °C at 13:30 h), pH 6.0, GH/KH < 1 °dH, Fe2+ = 0.05 mg/1, NOj not detectable. The substrate consisted of sand and gravel mixed with coarse, yellow clay.

Other

Forms specific to some locations and featuring bullate, undulate and flat blades have been identified.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1035199 capuronii Plants described in 1968 Endemic flora of Madagascar Freshwater plants