Read this first: this is not a true aquatic plant. Alternanthera ficoidea 'Rainbow' is a garden and terrarium plant. Kept underwater it holds its red, yellow and green variegation for several months and then needs a spell of emersed growth to recover. Bought with that in mind, few plants carry this much color.
What You'll Receive
- Sold as loose Fresh-cut Plants, Bunched plants, or Potted plants
- Fresh-cut plants | approx. 5 stems, loose fresh-cut plants without root
- Bunched plants | approx. 5 fresh-cut plants without root bundle with foam, and plant's weight
- Potted plants | approx. 5 fresh-cut plants potted with net pot and rock wool
Plant Profile
- Common name — Rainbow Alternanthera
- Scientific name — Alternanthera ficoidea 'Rainbow'
- Also known as — Rainbow Joseph's Coat
- True aquatic — No
- Best suited to — Terrarium, vivarium, riparium, paludarium or bog planting
- Origin — South America; widely cultivated as a garden plant
- Placement — Midground
- Shipped size — Approx. 5 fresh-cut stems, roughly 3-6 inches
- Mature height — 4-8 inches
- Suits — 10 gallons and up, or any humid terrarium
- Growth rate — Medium
Care
- Difficulty — Intermediate
- Light — Medium to high
- CO₂ — Recommended when submerged
- Water — 72-82°F, pH 6.0-7.5
- Substrate — Required. Nutrient-rich soil or root tabs; also feeds from the water column
- Growth habit — Non-aquatic; submerged use is temporary, emersed growth is permanent
- Propagation — Cuttings
Grower's Notes
- This is not a true aquatic plant, and we would rather say so. Submerged it survives and even puts on a few inches over several months, but it does not grow indefinitely underwater. Plan to rotate it out to a humid emersed setup to recover, or treat it as a seasonal accent.
- It is at its best above the waterline. In a riparium, paludarium, vivarium or bog planting with consistently wet soil and high humidity, the red-yellow-green variegation is far stronger and the plant grows without a time limit.
- Light drives the color range. Under moderate light the foliage leans green. Strong light — bright LED or partial sun emersed — is what brings out the reds and yellows that give it the name.
- Take cuttings before it declines. Root fresh tops in wet soil while the parent is still strong. Waiting until the submerged plant fades usually means the cuttings are too weak to take.
- Want permanent color underwater? Alternanthera reineckii is the same genus, fully submersible, and stays red indefinitely.
Want to go deeper? Read our complete Alternanthera Care Guide.
Notes
- Pictures are not the actual plants you will receive, but a sample representation. Unless specific, we don't guarantee aquatic plants will be free of pests, and pesticides, grow emerged, or submerge.
- Never release aquarium plants into natural waterways.
At a glance
- Free shipping on orders of $150 or more (after discounts) within the contiguous United States, by USPS.
- Free thermal protection is included with every shipment, all year round.
- Processing: most orders leave us within 1 to 2 business days. Tracking is emailed when your order ships.
- USPS (2 to 5 business days) ships Monday through Saturday.
- UPS 2nd Day Air® ships Monday through Wednesday. Order by Tuesday at 6:00 AM Pacific Time for same-week delivery.
- UPS Next Day Air® ships Monday through Thursday. Order by Wednesday at 6:00 AM Pacific Time for same-week delivery.
- Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands and military addresses ship by USPS at a flat rate shown at checkout.
- Weather holds: during extreme heat or cold we may hold live orders until it's safe to ship.
- We ship within the United States only.
Please bring live plants indoors and unpack them the day they arrive. Every live order is covered by our 24-Hour Live Arrival Guarantee.
The complete rules, including lost packages and address issues, are in our Shipping Policy. If anything conflicts, that policy applies.
Every live order is backed by our 24-Hour Live Arrival Guarantee. If a plant arrives dead, we'll make it right.
How it works
- Tell us within 24 hours of the delivery time on your tracking.
- Send photos of the affected items in their original, unopened packaging, plus a photo of the shipping label, to hello@aquariumplantsfactory.com with your order number.
- We'll make it right with a replacement, store credit or refund for the affected item.
Good to know
- Some melting or yellowing as plants adjust from greenhouse to aquarium life is normal. They regrow from healthy roots and rhizomes.
- Please bring your package indoors and unpack it the day it arrives.
- Free promotional items and shipping charges are not covered.
The complete rules, including what's covered and what voids the guarantee, are in our Returns, Refunds & Live Arrival Guarantee. If anything conflicts, that policy applies.
Please review your state's regulations on restricted plants, as we are committed to not shipping plants that are restricted in your area. Do not release any plants into the wild or waterways, as this can harm local ecosystems by introducing invasive species.
Your cooperation in protecting the environment is appreciated. For continuously updated information, refer to the USDA State Noxious Weed list here.
Thank you for your responsible commitment to environmental preservation.
Customers praised these aquatic plants for their vibrant colors and healthy condition upon arrival. "Absolutely gorgeous" plants with "colorful leaves" arrived well-packed. Most shoppers were delighted, though one reported plants arriving damaged with no customer service response. Color development may vary with temperature.
- The plants arrived in perfect shape. They are healthy and absolutely gorgeous.
- APF packed our plants so well and they still were quite moisturized
- The stems arrived in great shape, with lots of colorful leaves and roots already getting started.
O
Ordered around 7 or 8 species of plant for my newest 75g Community tank.
After the post office delivered a day late, I was concerned about dead. But APF packed our plants so well and they still were quite moisturized that we were able to add them to the tank that night. Thank you so much and will be ordering again!
J
The plants arrived in perfect shape. They are healthy and absolutely gorgeous. I highly recommend this shop.
L
I bought this plant about 6 months ago to add color to my greenhouse cabinet. It grew well, but it stayed completely green. I moved the two pots shown here out of the cabinet and into a colder/less humid room and they've gotten some color! The bigger pot has no extra humidity, just sits there at 30-40%. The smaller pot sits under a clear plastic cup so presumably has much higher humidity. They're the same distance under the same kind of lights as they had in the cabinet so maybe the temperature is the biggest factor? I'm not entirely sure yet, I tihnk there are a bunch of factors involved in alternanthera coloring.
T
Exceeded my expectations
A
I love the variations in the leaves.
H
Very pretty and interesting little stems. I’m interested to watch this one in different setups.
M
Ordered several plants ($100+) but half of them arrived falling apart and/or decaying. Reached out to customer service but got no response.
C
Love the red accents
E
I was impressed with the quality of the plants and how well they were packed.
K
The stems arrived in great shape, with lots of colorful leaves and roots already getting started. Will update if there's any major issues, but quite happy so far.
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