One of the most popular plants that are kept in aquariums, they are very hardy and need very little maintenance. They should soon develop a strong root system in the aquarium once they have settled and can grow quite large so allow them plenty of room. The Sword makes a great centrepiece to any aquarium, in larger aquariums you can provide a lot of cover by adding 2-3 specimens but as they mature they can grow leaves that will reach up to 12 inches in length so adding these to a small aquarium can soon crowd a tank restricting swimming space for the fish themselves. When first added to a new set up you may experience algal blooms on the leaves of the Sword but if the water quality is high and the parameters start to settle down , these blooms should disappear as quickly as they came. A sure sign of nutrient deficiency is yellowing of the lower leaves so always watch out for this and add liquid fertilisers to the water to overcome this. Plants are incubated in a solution of 0.01% of the insecticide Buprafezin for one hour (Please do not just drop these in a shrimp tank or with any other crustacean. To use these within a tank please wash in water with baking soda under light. These are treated to remove the insecticide but there are cases where this has not been fully removed causing casualties in crustacean. Supplier of plants: oxygenators, reeds, iris, water lilies, bog gardens, wildlife ponds, natural ponds, lakes, floating plants, deep water plants, marginals, native british and tropical.

Water softness: Very soft to hard --- 10 strands supplied -- NOT shrimp safe. Growth/PH: fast / 6-8 -- CO2: 20-30 mg/l. Light/Temperature: high-medium / 22-28 degrees C. Area/Height: Background up to 50cm. The Sword, also known as Echinodorus icus, is a Rosette plant that is extremely popular with many an aquarium enthusiasts. Usually reaching to about 40 cm when placed in the proper water conditions the Sword Plant is dark green with relatively short stems and sword like leaves with a pointed tip. They grow very well in aquariums up to 200L. Planted in small mesh pots with foam around the roots. 10 x strands supplied. NOT shrimp safe.