Amazon Sword (Echinodorus amazonicus) is the most widely kept large aquarium plant in the freshwater hobby and the plant against which most other large background plants are implicitly compared. It produces a rosette of long, lanceolate bright-to-medium green leaves that can reach 40–60cm in established specimens in adequate tanks — filling the background with a dense, upright, full-looking mass of leaves that provides immediate visual presence, significant biological surface area, and reliable, forgiving performance across a very wide range of tank conditions. It has no unusual requirements, no demanding care thresholds, no sensitivity to parameter ranges within the broad Neocaridina and most Caridina tanks — it simply grows, steadily and reliably, under low to high light, in hard or soft water, in a wide temperature range, with or without CO₂. For new tanks, planted beginners, or any setup that needs a large, effective background plant without complexity, Amazon Sword is the benchmark answer. Fully safe with all Neocaridina, Caridina, and snails.
Not RequiredCO₂
60–84°FTemperature
Low–HighLighting
What to Expect
Growth, Scale & Reliability
Long, lanceolate leaves reaching 40–60cm in good conditions — established Amazon Swords produce long, upright, lanceolate leaves — broadly pointed at the tip, tapering to the petiole at the base — that fill the background vertical zone completely in tanks with adequate height and root nutrition. Leaf width is moderate — wider than Vallisneria ribbons but narrower than the broad leaves of Golden Melon or Red Flame Sword — giving the plant a tall, upright, full-looking presence that reads as substantial from across the room.
Extremely adaptable — grows under more conditions than any other large plant in the catalog — Amazon Sword tolerates a wider range of pH, GH, KH, temperature, and light conditions than any other large background plant in the catalog. It grows visibly and steadily under low light conditions that would stall most other background plants; it tolerates the hard, alkaline water of most tap water setups as readily as the soft, acidic water of Caridina tanks; it produces new leaves across a temperature range from cool subtropical to warm tropical. This breadth of tolerance is its defining practical characteristic.
Deep root feeder — substrate nutrition drives maximum performance — like all Echinodorus, Amazon Sword feeds heavily through a deep, spreading root system. Root tabs placed around the planting site at introduction and renewed regularly are the most impactful single maintenance action for sustained large-leaf growth. In nutrient-rich substrate or with consistent root tab supplementation, Amazon Sword produces its largest, most impressive leaves. In inert substrate without supplementation it still grows but remains smaller and produces fewer simultaneous leaves than its potential.
Reliable biofilm surface area and physical cover for shrimp — the large, broad leaves of an established Amazon Sword accumulate biofilm across a substantial combined surface area that shrimp graze continuously. The rosette structure provides physical cover at multiple heights — from substrate level where the base leaves lie close to the ground, through the midwater column where intermediate leaves provide cover, to the upper water column where the longest leaves reach. Shrimplets actively use the shelter provided by dense Amazon Sword rosettes.
Produces runners with daughter plants in a healthy established tank — a well-fed, healthy Amazon Sword produces long runners that arch away from the parent rosette and develop daughter plants. These are among the easiest plants to propagate in the catalog — daughter plants with four or more leaves and their own visible root system can be cut from the runner and replanted, shared, or used to establish a second specimen position.
How to Set It Up
Getting Started
1Plant in the background with the crown just above substrate — choose a background position with 40–60cm of surrounding clearance for the full rosette to develop. Push roots into substrate gently with the crown — the central growing point — at or just above the substrate surface. Buried crowns rot. In tanks with hardscape, position the Sword to one side of or behind the main hardscape arrangement rather than directly in front of it where the large leaves would obscure it.
2Place root tabs before planting — push two to three root tabs into the substrate 6–8cm from the planting point before introducing the plant. Root tabs from the start of planting produce faster establishment and larger first-generation leaves than substrate supplemented after the plant has been growing for weeks.
3Any light level from low to high works — higher light means faster growth — Amazon Sword grows under low light at a slower rate with smaller leaves; under high light it grows faster and produces larger leaves. Choose the light level that suits the rest of the tank — the Sword will adapt. CO₂ is not required but improves growth rate and leaf size if present in the tank for other reasons.
4Remove old outer leaves as they yellow and dose liquid fertiliser consistently — established Amazon Swords cycle through their outer leaves — older leaves yellow and deteriorate as the plant grows new central leaves. Remove yellowing outer leaves cleanly at the petiole base rather than leaving them to decompose. Consistent liquid fertiliser two to three times weekly alongside root tab supplementation sustains continuous healthy leaf production throughout the plant's life in the tank.
💡 Bonus Tip
Amazon Sword is the most reliable plant for establishing the visual foundation of a new tank quickly — a single large, established specimen introduced at setup immediately makes the tank look planted and intentional before slower-growing plants have had time to establish. Pair it with a group of Anubias or Bucephalandra on driftwood in the midground and a fast-spreading foreground plant like Dwarf Hair Grass, and a tank that looks completely unplanted on day one looks substantially composed within four to six weeks — the Sword providing immediate background impact while the other plants develop at their own pace.
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Browse more aquatic plantsPair Amazon Sword with Golden Melon Sword, Red Flame Sword, Vallisneria, or Anubias for a complete planted layout. Browse our Aquatic Plants collection.
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