The open plant encyclopedia
Snap a photo or search by any name to see how to care for it, where it comes from, whether it's safe, and a 3D model you can turn.
The plants people record most in your country, and ones that grow there wild.
Filter by what you want to do, shape, origin, country, care and safety.
Echinodorus
Also called Swordplant, Burheads And Sword Plants
Burhead (Echinodorus) is a genus of marsh and aquatic plants, with the single species Echinodorus berteroi native to the Americas; commonly grown members include the Amazon sword plants popular in aquariums and ponds. Grow them in good light, a deep nutrient-rich substrate, and warm tropical conditions.
Echinodorus, commonly known as burhead, is a genus of plant in the family Alismataceae. It contains a single species, Echinodorus berteroi, which is native to the Americas. The name is derived from Ancient Greek echius 'rough husk', and doros 'leathern bottle', alluding to ovaries, which in some species are armed with persistent styles, forming prickly head of fruit.
Echinodorus are by nature marsh and bog plants that can grow submersed. Many species are grown in aquariums. They prefer good light and grow best in a deep, nutrient-rich substrate. Most will grow in variable water conditions, though the majority need tropical or sub-tropical temperature ranges. Propagation is by division or by adventitious new plants developing on submerged flowering stems. The larger species make magnificent specimen plants for the larger aquarium, though they may form aerial leaves in good conditions. If the inflorescence forms submersed, small plantlets will form instead of flowers. If grown emersed and kept humid, flowers and seeds will normally readily form. The seeds can be grown in damp sand in warm, damp conditions. Additional CO2 often helps in strong growth.
Many species are popular in the aquarium or pond. The Amazon sword plants are one of the most popular aquarium plants for their attractive form and general hardiness.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Echinodorus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
