Echinodorus Tennelis

🌿 Species Profile

• Common Name: Dwarf Chain Sword / Pygmy Chain Sword
• Scientific Name: Echinodorus tenellus
• Plant Type: Foreground carpeting plant
• Origin: North & South America
• Growth Rate: Moderate to fast
• Difficulty: Easy to moderate
• Placement: Foreground

🌱 Appearance

• Very thin, grass-like leaves
• Bright to light green color
• Grows in small clusters
• Creates a soft lawn effect when mature
• Size:
  • Height: 3–10 cm (1–4 in)
  • Spread: spreads via runners (stolon growth)

🧪 Tank Requirements

• Temperature: 22–28°C
• pH: 6.0–7.5
• Hardness: Soft to medium
• Lighting: Medium to high (important for carpeting)
• CO₂: Strongly recommended for dense carpet growth

🌿 Substrate & Nutrition

• Prefers nutrient-rich substrate
• Benefits from:
  • Root tabs
  • Iron supplementation
  • Stable macro/micro nutrients
• In poor light or nutrients, it grows tall instead of carpeting

✂️ Care Tips

• Needs regular trimming to maintain carpet look
• Must have good light penetration to the bottom
• Plant small clumps spaced apart for faster spreading
• Avoid shading from tall plants

🌱 Propagation

• Spreads via runners (stolons)
• New plantlets form along horizontal stems
• Naturally fills foreground over time

🐟 Aquarium Use

Best for:

• Natural grassy foregrounds
• Dutch-style planted tanks
• Nature aquascapes

Works well with:

• Shrimp
• Small tetras
• Rasboras
• Corydoras (light substrate disturbance only)

⭐ Key point

Echinodorus tenellus is one of the easiest true carpeting sword plants, but it needs good light + nutrients + CO₂ for a dense lawn effect.