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Narrow Leaf Amazon Sword Plant

As the name suggests, this plant originates from the Amazon River basin where it grows in the mid and lower regions of the river system. In addition to Echinodorus amazonicus, it is also known as Echinodorus brevipedicellutus. The Amazon Sword is sometimes confused with Echinodorus bleheri, since this close relative is also commonly referred to as Amazon Sword.

Amazon Swords should ideally be planted in a medium fine gravel bed. Like most of its close relatives in the genus Echinodorus, it can grow out of the water and is therefore a great choice for an open aquarium. It will however do fine completely submersed too. In the wild, you can often see Amazon Swords growing in boggy environments.

Propagation of this species is carried out by adventitious roots or by runner. When Amazon Swords grow completely submerged, their flowers will never open. If you allow your Amazon Sword to grow up above the surface, it will produce a thin floral stalk with four to nine white flowers. The pollen is yellow and you can use a feather or soft brush to cause fertilization once the flowers have opened up.

Be patient, because Amazon Sword seeds need plenty of time to develop. You may think that something has gone wrong when all you see is a lifeless, dried up crown in the centre of a wilted flower, but this is how it’s supposed to look.

Ideally keep the nodes of your Amazon Sword submersed because this will aid the formation of plantlets. It is possible for plantlets to form above the water as well, provided that the humidity is high enough, but such plantlets will not produce any roots.

When you can see roots on the plantlets, gently twist them off the runner and plant them in the substrate. If you want more plantlets it is important not to injure the runner, because a good runner can produce plantlets many times. It just needs to rest for a few months.

Amazon Swords are actually amphibious plants, but become completely aquatic if submerged. This makes them very popular for aquariums as they are also quite easy to grow.

   Amazon Sword Plants will grow anyware from 14 to 20 inches This makes them great for background or centerpiece plant. The leaves, being very long and fairly broad, make up the main part of the plant.  If you do not want the plant growing above the water, trim it's longer leaves periodically. Also remove older leaves to keep the plant looking healthy.

   The Amazon Sword is a relatively easy to keep, with a few things to keep in mind. They do well in fine, iron-rich substrates and Medium to bright lighting.