Colour that changes as you walk past. Bucephalandra sp. 'Pandora Queen' carries medium-sized, slightly wavy leaves with a metallic sheen that reads blue, violet or emerald depending on the light and the angle you view it from. Under RGB lighting the shift is dramatic. What You’ll Receive Sold as loose Bare-Root or Potted plants: 1 Bare-Root: Approximately 5+ leaves 5 Bare-Root: Approximately 25+ leaves total 10 Bare-Root: Approximately 50+ leaves total 1 Potted: Approximately 10+ leaves 5 Potted: Approximately 50+ leaves total 10 Potted: Approximately 100+ leaves total Plant Profile Common name — Pandora Queen Buce Scientific name — Bucephalandra sp. 'Pandora Queen' Also known as — Buce, Bucep Origin — Riverbanks of Borneo Placement — Midground, on wood or stone Mature height — 3–5 in Growth rate — Very slow Care Difficulty — Beginner Light — Low to medium. Stronger light brings out the iridescence CO₂ — Not required, though it improves growth rate Water — 72–82°F · pH 6.0–7.5 Substrate — Not required. Attaches to hardscape Growth habit — Amphibious. Also grows emersed — suits paludariums Propagation — Rhizome division Grower’s Notes Iridescence is structural, not pigment. The blue and violet come from the leaf surface reflecting light rather than from dye in the tissue — so the colour shifts with angle and lighting, and photographs rarely capture it. It also means the plant is no harder to keep than a plain green Buce. Farm-raised, not wild-collected. All the Bucephalandra we carry is farm-grown, and much of it is raised from tissue culture rather than collected from Borneo. Never bury the rhizome. Glue or tie it to rock or wood; buried rhizomes rot. Growth is measured in months, which is why Buce holds its shape in a scape for years without trimming. Some melting after planting is normal as it converts to submerged growth. New leaves follow from the rhizome. Want to go deeper? Read our complete Bucephalandra Care Guide. Notes Like most Bucephalandra species, minor leaf melt may occur after introduction as the plant adjusts to new water parameters. This is normal and temporary — new submersed leaves will regrow from the rhizome once the plant stabilizes. Never release aquarium plants into natural waterways.
