Amazon sword
Echinodorus grisebachii
Also known asSword plant · Echinodorus bleheri (synonym) · Echinodorus amazonicus (synonym)
Water parameters
Light and nutrients
Substrate type: nutrient preferred. Propagation: runners.
Substrate compatibility
| Substrate | pH effect | Nutrient load |
|---|---|---|
| Aquasoil (ADA Amazonia) | lowers pH | very high |
| Mineralized clay substrate (Seachem Fluorite) | neutral / inert | moderate |
| Dirted tank (mineralized topsoil) (DIY soil substrate) | slightly acidic | very high |
| Inert sand (Pool filter sand) | neutral / inert | none |
With fish
Origin and habitat
Native to fresh waters from Cuba and Central America south through South America to Brazil and Bolivia, in shallow, slow river margins and floodplain lakes, often growing partly emersed with leaves above the surface. The accepted species is Echinodorus grisebachii (family Alismataceae), with the familiar trade names E. amazonicus and E. bleheri now treated as synonyms after Lehtonen's 2008 revision; some authorities place it in the genus Aquarius. It forms a large rosette of broad, bright-green leaves, 20–50 cm long in mature plants, from a central crown, with a deep, vigorous root system. Submersed aquarium leaves are narrower and more translucent than the firmer emersed ones, and most plants sold in shops are nursery-grown emersed. It has been an aquarium staple since the 1930s.
Care notes
A heavy root feeder that needs a nutrient-rich substrate or regular root tabs to thrive; in bare gravel it stunts, with translucent, yellowing leaves within a few months. Plant the crown at the substrate surface with roots buried in at least 5 cm of substrate, and push iron-bearing root tabs in near the base every few months. Yellowing new leaves with green veins signal iron deficiency. Low to medium light, around 30 to 50 PAR at the substrate, is plenty; high light mainly invites algae on the broad leaves. CO2 speeds growth but is not needed. Mature plants are large, 30–50 cm tall and up to about 30 cm across, enough for a single specimen to fill and shade a small tank, so give it room as a background or midground focal point in a larger setup. It propagates by plantlets that form along a flower stalk: once a plantlet has four or five leaves and roots, detach and plant it, and trim old outer leaves at the base as they yellow. It is an ornamental rosette, not a crop, so it is not suited to media-bed aquaponics or hydroponics.