# Emersed Echinodorus



## Axelrodi202 (Jun 7, 2009)

Is it normal for emersed Echinodorus from red cultivars to become green?

Also, what are some tips for keeping multiple Echinodorus cultivars emersed in a limited amount of tank space? Would they be able to adjust low (room-level) humidity provided wet substrate?


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## asukawashere (Mar 11, 2009)

It's fairly common for color changes to occur in Echinodorus from submersed to emersed, especially, as you've noted, from red to green. Red submersed plants frequently have red-veined green leaves emersed, for instance. Some turn totally green. For instance, my emersed 'Tanzende Feuerfeder' is solid green, and my 'Altlandsberg' displays dark green foliage with red veins.

Echinodorus will thrive in low-humidity environments so long as they're acclimated gradually to them. Mine get put outside for the summer; first they go in the humid greenhouse, then later in the season I kick them out of there into the open sunlight outside. Free light and heat ftw!

As for space... good luck with that. If swords are properly maintained, they'll turn into monster plants given half a chance. So long as they have nutrients, they'll find a way to grow. When they get bored of just growing bigger, they'll send out a bajillion scapes and make babies. That will slow, but not stop, the mother plant's growth. They also propagate by crown division, so eventually your mother plant can be pulled up and broken into multiple other plants... If you kept repeating that process, you could limit their horizontal spread, but even that won't prevent their vertical growth. Most varieties get to be around 2 feet tall (or bigger) emersed... with a handful of exceptions like E. grisebachii 'Tropica' (a.k.a "E. parviflorus").


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