Subclass Alismatidae
Order Alismatales
Family Alismataceae
Genus Echinodorus
Echinodorus berteroi
Synonyms: Echinodorus berteroanum, Echinodorus cordifolium, Echinodorus cordifolius, Echinodorus lanceolatus, Echinodorus patagonicus, Echinodorus rostratum, Echinodorus sprengelii.
“1” Distributed over a large area in the West Indies, Central America, and the southern United States. Submerged plants do not exceed 25 cm in height. It has a very rigid, short stem that produces numerous delicate white roots and even more delicate leaves of the most bizarre shapes. Each new leaf of the plant differs in some way from all previous ones, which is especially noticeable in young plants. Leaves in the rosette are initially sessile, then petiolate. The leaf blade is first linear, then ovate or lanceolate, 6-15 cm long, up to 3.5 cm wide, with a rounded or cordate base, obtuse apex, flat to slightly wavy edges, and slightly translucent. Almost always, mature plants develop dents on the leaf blade.
Leaf color ranges from golden-green to pinkish, depending on lighting and apparently water composition. The veins on the leaf (longitudinal and transverse) range from light green to golden-green and are convex on the underside. Their shapes are very diverse: linear, ribbon-like, lanceolate, ovate, or cordate. It is believed that there are several natural forms of this species, differing in leaf configuration. Their edges are wavy, the surface is membranous-translucent, and always quite fragile. A single plant can have 10-30 leaves, all differing from each other in both shape and color shade, which gives this plant a special visual appeal. Due to its semi-transparent submerged leaves, this species is called the “cellophane plant”. It is an exceptionally hardy plant.
“2” Plants in their submerged form cannot tolerate hard water with a high content of calcium salts, which precipitate on the leaf surface as a light coating. This plant requires very clean, preferably soft water. Under prolonged lighting (12 hours or more), the plant sheds its submerged leaves, and floating and emergent leaves appear on long petioles. To prevent the plant from forming floating leaves, illuminate it for no more than 8-10 hours. T 20-26°C, dH 2-12°, pH 6.5-7.0.
“4” A rhizomatous plant. The maximum size and lushness of the submerged plant are primarily influenced by the water column height, lighting intensity, and nutrient richness of the substrate. Depending on these conditions, the height of the plant ranges from 20 to 100 cm, and the number of leaves from 10 to 40. Practice shows that if this Echinodorus begins to produce an excessive number of floating and aerial leaves, this can be prevented by pulling the plant slightly from the substrate or by replanting. These methods damage the root system and reduce nutrient uptake.
You can prevent the rapid formation of floating leaves under 12-hour lighting by planting the plant in clean sand without nutrients and constantly trimming fully opened leaves, or by placing the rhizome in a plastic bag and submerging it in the substrate to restrict root growth.
“5” Suitable for aquarium corners or as a focal plant in the midground. A lush, densely foliated plant is an ornament to the aquarium, changing from week to week as new leaves develop. Planting this species in hard water, as well as damage by large fish, can lead to its death. This Echinodorus has very delicate leaves, especially young ones, so certain herbivorous fish pose a threat to it.
Its major drawback is the summer production of floating cordate leaves that shade the water surface. If the emersed form develops in the aquarium, the plant loses its submerged leaves and ceases to serve its decorative function in the tank.
“6” Among aquurists, this plant is not very common, especially in areas where nursery supplies do not reach. The undoubted reason for this is that Echinodorus berteroi reproduces almost exclusively by seeds. Propagation by buds on the rhizome is extremely slow, and it is possible to obtain only 1-3 new plants from a single specimen over 2-3 years.
Creeping Burhead, Spade Leaf Plant — Echinodorus cordifolius.
Synonyms: Echinodorus fluitans, Echinodorus ovalis, Echinodorus radicans, Echinodorus schlueteri. (English: Radicans Sword, Spade Leaf Plant).
“1” Central America. An original plant with very attractive mottled leaves. It can reach significant sizes. Usually, during the first year, a plant placed in an aquarium does not exceed 20-30 cm in height; later, it rapidly forms emergent and floating leaves, reaching a height of 80 cm. Leaf petioles are usually about the same length as the leaf blades.
The leaf blades have wavy edges and more rounded apices. A submerged plant typically bears 4-5 well-developed, large, light green leaves with brownish-red veins, often with randomly scattered brown dots. The bases of the blades are broadly cordate. Before aerial leaves form, the plant produces numerous round floating leaves, 20×15 cm, which cover the entire surface of the aquarium.
“2” Requires clean water with a near-neutral pH and tolerates relatively high hardness and temperature levels. Water temperature is preferred within 22-26°C; however, the Echinodorus tolerates significant temperature drops (down to 12°C) for 2-3 weeks very well. Similarly, the plant tolerates temperature increases above 28°C, but requires a resting period at 18-20°C twice a year for 1-1.5 months.
The plant dislikes acidic, very soft water. Optimal growth conditions are water with a hardness of 8-16° and a pH above 6.8. It needs fairly bright lighting. The plant tolerates shading poorly. Bright lighting with a short photoperiod (about 8 hours) allows the plant to maintain only submerged leaves for a long time. When the photoperiod is extended to 11-12 hours, the Echinodorus begins to form aerial leaves and blooms.
“4” The plant has a thick rhizome with a dense root system. Elongated tubers develop on the roots, serving as reserve organs. The substrate should be lightly silted to preserve the submerged form for as long as possible. In a very humus-rich substrate, the plant’s roots may rot. The substrate can range from coarse sand to large gravel.
“5” This is a large Echinodorus cultivated in large aquariums. Excessively large plants can be kept small for a long time by radically pruning leaves. Daughter plants are best suited for planting in the aquarium because they will only need trimming after several months. Under normal conditions, it may not go through a winter dormancy period year-round.
Depending on the conditions provided, it can maintain its submerged form for several years, but under favorable conditions, its leaves burst out of the aquarium. The bush gains extraordinary strength and size, reproducing with numerous runners. It is grown under diffused, subdued lighting in aquariums with a very poor substrate (clean sand) to maintain the submerged form as long as possible. Planting density: 1 plant per 25 cm2.
“6” It is primarily propagated by young plants arising in the whorls of the inflorescence. After flowering, daughter plants form on the flower stalk. In this case, the flower stem should be submerged in water. Once several small leaves and a root cluster have formed, the daughter plants can be separated from the mother bush and planted in the general substrate. As a rule, they quickly begin to grow and develop well even under unfavorable conditions.
Identification: Echinodorus cordifolius.
Echinodorus cordifolius schlueteri, “Leopard”, “Ovalis”, “Marble Queen”.
Synonym table for the genus Echinodorus. 
