Theia runs warm — golden to copper-bronze with a soft iridescence, on narrow, gently curved leaves. It is one of the few Bucephalandra that reads gold rather than blue, green or red, which makes it useful where the rest of a scape is cool-toned. 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 — Theia Buce Scientific name — Bucephalandra sp. 'Theia' Also known as — Buce Theia Origin — Borneo (genus range) Placement — Foreground to midground, attached to hardscape Mature height — 2-4 inches Growth rate — Very slow Care Difficulty — Beginner Light — Low to medium. Stronger light lifts the gold and copper, but brings algae the plant is too slow to outgrow. CO₂ — Not required. Speeds growth and enriches color if you already run it. Water — 72-82°F, pH 6.0-7.5 Substrate — None needed. Epiphyte; feeds from the water column. Growth habit — Amphibious rhizome creeper; grows submersed or emersed Propagation — Rhizome division Grower's Notes Gold is the gap in most Buce collections. The genus runs heavily to blue, green, purple and red. A warm copper-gold sits against all of them, which is why Theia is worth having even if you already keep several varieties. Never bury the rhizome. Tie or glue it to wood or rock and leave it exposed; buried rhizomes rot. 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. At under two inches of growth a year, coverage has to be bought rather than waited for. Start with more plants if you want a filled-in look. Some leaf melt after shipping is normal. The rhizome survives and pushes new submersed leaves within a few weeks. Not to be confused with Bucephalandra Theia Green, which is a separate variety. Want to go deeper? Read our complete Bucephalandra Care Guide. Notes Like most Bucephalandra, minor leaf melt may occur after introduction as the plant adjusts to new water parameters. This is normal and temporary — new submersed leaves regrow from the rhizome once the plant stabilizes. Never release aquarium plants into natural waterways.
