Melon sword

Care at a glance

Overview

A large background rosette grown for the pink to bronze color on its emerging leaves. Set it in rich substrate with the crown above the soil line and feed it with root tabs, since like all swords it eats mostly through its roots. It tolerates low to moderate light, but brighter light plus CO2 and iron bring out the melon coloring and keep growth compact. Pull off cracked or algae-covered old leaves at the base, and give it space because a settled plant gets tall and wide.

In the wild

Native to subtropical southern Brazil, in the Rio Grande do Sul region, where it grows along rivers and streams. Like other swords it is an amphibious marsh plant that spends much of the year submersed and grows emersed leaves when water levels fall.

Good to know

Another Alismataceae sword that grows as a rosette from a short, stout rootstock rather than a creeping rhizome. It is named for the melon-pink to reddish flush on its new leaves, which deepens under stronger light. It propagates by throwing adventitious daughter plants along its flower stalks (inflorescence), which can be pegged down once they root.

Did you know

The 'melon' name comes from the color of its young leaves, which emerge a soft pink-orange like cantaloupe flesh before hardening off to green or bronze. Higher light and good iron levels make that coloring more pronounced.

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