It was a great surprise in January 2010 when Hang He Wei and Zhou Hang found a new Cryptocoryne in the Guangxi province in S China. Apparently it belongs to the crispatula group, according to the spathe, but with its long and broad smooth leaves with a red lower side if differs from all known varieties.

Click on the picture to get the full image (ca 50 k)

The upper stream with shallow water coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	... depth ca 20 cm with a gravel bottom, half shaded. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	The lower stream with a more muddy bottom. Partly sunny. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	Flowering abundantly in January with a white spathe. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou

Spathe length up to 30 cm. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	Fully white in- and outside. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	An emersed specimen with shorter leaves. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	A submerged plant with a clear red lower side of the leaves. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou

A submerged growing plant ... coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	... the lower side red, ... coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	... idem, with more narrow leaves... coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	... lower side of the leaves. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou

The half shaded stream is a contribute to a bigger river. In that river, at ca 20 m from the stream with var. planifolia, grows var. tonkinensis (right in the picture) in full sun. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01/02 photo Zhou	An immature fruit of var. planifolia. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	Length section of the kettle showing the spadix with the male flowers (top) and female flowers (bottom). Note the reddish top half of the kettle. coll. Zhou ZH2010-01 photo Zhou	Distribution of C. crispatula var. planifolia in the Guangxi province, S. China. Up to now there is only one record for this plant.

Water parameters indicate that var. planifolia may be suited for a cool aquarium, temperature ca. 20 C.

Updated February 2016

literature:
Zhou, H., H.W. He & N. Jacobsen, 2010. Eine neue Varietät der Cryptocoryne crispatula Engler (Araceae) aus der Provinz Guangxi, China. Aqua Planta 35(4): 134-138. (see the Document service, included an English translation)

Back to the Crispatula group for an overview and more literature.