Dwarf hairgrass
Eleocharis parvula
Also known as Dwarf spikerush, Eleocharis parvula 'Mini'
Care at a glance
- Light
- Medium light
- CO2
- CO₂ beneficial
- Growth rate
- Medium
- Placement
- Foreground
- Type
- Carpeting
- Temperature
- 59–82°F (15–28°C)
- pH
- 6.0–7.5
- Hardness
- 2–12 dGH
- Max height
- 3.9 in (10 cm)
- Spread
- 2 in (5 cm)
- Nutrient uptake
- Root + water column
- Growth region
- Submersed or emersed
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Origin
- Cosmopolitan (temperate and tropical wetlands worldwide)
- Family
- Cyperaceae
Overview
Plant it as a foreground carpet by separating tissue-culture or potted stock into small tufts of a few blades and pushing each into the substrate a couple centimeters apart so the runners can knit them together. It will grow in moderate light without CO2 but stays shorter, denser, and carpets much faster with strong light and added CO2. A nutrient-rich or capped substrate helps, and giving the new carpet a trim once it establishes encourages it to thicken rather than reach for the surface. Patience is the main requirement, as the initial spread is slow before it suddenly fills in.
In the wild
A genuinely cosmopolitan spikerush found in marshes, ditches, and the muddy margins of brackish and fresh water across temperate and tropical regions worldwide. It is a marginal wetland sedge, growing emersed in saturated mud and tolerating periodic submersion. Because of that wide native range it copes with everything from cool to warm water and soft to moderately hard conditions.
Good to know
A true sedge in the family Cyperaceae, not a grass despite the common name. The thin green blades are actually leafless photosynthetic stems, and the plant spreads aggressively by horizontal underground runners that pop up new shoots all around the parent. It is the smallest of the commonly sold Eleocharis species, distinct from the taller E. acicularis and E. montevidensis.
Did you know
Those slender blades are not leaves at all but modified leafless stems, so a hairgrass carpet is essentially a lawn of green stalks doing all the photosynthesis.
Where to buy
Some links may not be the exact species or variety.
- Glass Aqua Aquascaping plants and planted tank supplies
- Buce Plant Aquatic plants and aquascaping supplies
- Aquarium Plants Factory Aquatic plants shipped from a California greenhouse
…or ask your local fish store.
Appears in
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Related plants
Needle hairgrass
Eleocharis acicularisMedium lightForeground7.9 in (20 cm)
Giant hairgrass
Eleocharis montevidensisMedium lightMidground11.8 in (30 cm)
Umbrella hairgrass
Eleocharis viviparaMedium lightBackground15.7 in (40 cm)
Cyperus helferi
Cyperus helferiMedium lightMidground11.8 in (30 cm)
Marsilea hirsuta
Marsilea hirsutaMedium lightForeground3.9 in (10 cm)
Pygmy chain sword
Helanthium tenellumMedium lightForeground3.9 in (10 cm)