Cultivated form (nursery selection from Echinodorus 'Ozelot', no wild range); selected by Hans Barth in Dessau, Germany
Overview
Red Flame sword is an easy sword for the midground. In tanks up to about 30 cm tall, it also works in the background.
Did you know
Red Flame sword is a parent of three later swords from the Zoologica nursery in Altlandsberg, Germany. They are Paul Klöcker, Red Devil and Tanzende Feuerfeder. Hans Barth also selected Green Flame from Ozelot, and Heimbiotop calls the two hard to tell apart underwater.
Caring for Red Flame sword
Plant Red Flame sword in a nutrient-rich substrate with the crown at the surface. If you use plain sand or gravel, push root tabs under the crown. Potted plants usually arrive with plain green emersed leaves, which often die back after planting.
Medium light is enough, and strong light gives intense red over very light green. It grows without injected CO2, and added CO2 speeds up growth. It also takes in food through its leaves, so a liquid fertilizer helps alongside the root tabs. Keep the water at 68 to 82°F (20 to 28°C).
It grows at a moderate pace, and old leaves can be cut off at the base. Flower stalks carry plantlets that you can cut free once they root. You can also divide the rhizome or plant side shoots on their own.
Good to know
Red Flame sword is a sword cultivar in the family Alismataceae. It forms a dense rosette with leaf blades up to 20 cm long. Young underwater leaves carry dark red blotches packed closely over light green to brown-red. Aquasabi rates the pattern stronger and denser than Ozelot's. Echinodorus 'Aflame' is a different sword with deep dark red leaves, in the trade since about 2005.
In the wild
Red Flame sword is a nursery cultivar with no wild range. Hans Barth of Dessau, Germany, selected it from a stock of his spotted sword Ozelot, and it has been in the trade since 1998. Ozelot is a cross of Echinodorus schlueteri 'Leopard' and Echinodorus 'Barthii'. The wild swords behind that cross root in the mud of South American marshes and slow rivers.
Common questions
Does Red Flame sword need to be planted in the substrate?
Yes. Bury the roots and leave the crown, where the leaves join, just above the substrate.
Does Red Flame sword need CO2?
No, but it helps. Red Flame sword can grow without injected CO2, and added CO2 makes it grow faster.
How much light does Red Flame sword need?
Red Flame sword wants medium light. A light sold for planted tanks covers it.
Does Red Flame sword need root tabs?
They help. Red Flame sword takes nutrients through both its roots and its leaves. Root tabs near its roots and a liquid fertilizer cover both.
How do you propagate Red Flame sword?
Red Flame sword propagates by plantlets, rhizome division and side shoots. Small plantlets form on the plant and can be detached once they have a few roots. Cut the rhizome into pieces with several leaves each, then tie or plant each piece.
How tall does Red Flame sword grow?
Red Flame sword grows to about 11.8 in (30 cm) tall. It grows at a moderate pace.
Low lightMidground7.9 in (20 cm)
Medium lightBackground19.7 in (50 cm)
High lightBackground19.7 in (50 cm)
Medium lightBackground19.7 in (50 cm)