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    Home / Education / Ant Plant
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    Ant Plant

    Myrmecodia solomonensis

    This plant lives in a symbiotic relationship with a colony of ants. Hollow tunnels form inside the caudex (the swollen base of the stem) with external entrance holes, and ants can use the plant as an above-ground nest. In exchange, the ants provide nutrients for the plant in the form of their droppings, and defend the plant from other insects.

    Scientific classification:

    Kingdom: Plantae
    Division: Angiosperms
    Class: Eudicots
    Order: Gentianales
    Family: Rubiaceae
    Genus: Myrmecodia
    Species: solomonensis

    Natural habitat and growing conditions:

    Native to the Solomon islands, this ant plant for sale is an ultra-tropical epiphyte (living on tree branches, though not as a parasite). It requires constant warmth, high humidity, and bright light to perform well. A resident colony of ants is not required if the plant is fertilized occasionally, though it has a fairly limited root system. It can be grown mounted, or in an airy potting mix; long-fiber sphagnum seems to work well if given perfect drainage.

    Notes of interest:

    • The symbiosis with ants allows the plant to grow in otherwise nutrient-poor locations on tree branches with little or no substrate; the ants effectively deliver nutrients back to the plant from a much larger area than the roots could ever get.
    • Yet another example of convergent evolution, many other plant groups have independently evolved symbiotic relationships with ants, using them for pollination, seed distribution, nutrient sources or defense. Some are even obligate mutualisms-- the ants and plants are completely interdependent and cannot survive on their own.
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    Black Dog LED

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    800-380-2291
    Office Hours:
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    M-F: After 5 By Appointment
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    Products
    • PhytoMAX-3 Commercial Grow Lights
    • PhytoMAX-3 Professional Grow Lights
    • PhytoMAX-3 Home Grow Lights
    • Accessories
    Our Technology
    • Unique Science Based Spectrum
    • Superior Yields
    • Case Studies / Testimonials
    • Leaf Surface Temperature
    Education
    • Home Growing
    • Commercial Growing
    • Spectrum / Color
    • Light Measurements / Comparing Lights
    • Product Design
    • Deployment / Installation
    • All Categories
    Quick Resources
    • Growing 101
    • Galleries
    • Growing Calculators
    Black Dog LED

    1120 Delaware Ave.
    Longmont, CO 80501

    720-420-1209
    800-380-2291
    Office Hours:
    M-F: 9 am - 5 pm
    M-F: After 5 By Appointment
    Sat - Sun: By Appointment

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