Patchy range in Brazil (Minas Gerais, Bahia), Peru, Uruguay and western Mexico (Nayarit)
Water
freshwater
Care level
intermediate
Care
Echinodorus palaefolius is a variant spelling: Wikipedia gives the correct spelling as palifolius and now places the plant in the genus Aquarius, as Aquarius palifolius. The page key keeps the listed spelling. Its common name is Mexican sword plant, and it grows wild in scattered places in Brazil, Peru, Uruguay and Mexico; it has also been introduced elsewhere. Wikipedia describes it as an emergent aquatic plant, one that grows with its leaves above the water. Our sources say nothing about its size or how it does fully submerged, so treat it as a marginal or paludarium plant first and an aquarium plant only by experiment. If you try it under water, give it a rich substrate and strong light. Water figures are not given by the sources; a warm tropical to subtropical range is likely to suit it. Sources: Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echinodoruspalaefolius); Wikipedia, List of freshwater aquarium plant species. Checked October 2026.
Breeding
The sources do not describe propagation. Emergent swords usually flower readily, and plantlets on the flower stems or division of the rhizome are the easiest ways to increase it.
Compatibility and tank mates
Generally ignored by fish and snails, like other swords. Because it prefers to grow above the water, it is best in a paludarium, a pond margin or the open top of a large tank rather than a planted community tank.
Last updated 8 October 2026. Community-edited care guide on Aquatic-Auctions.
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Items are sold by auction, buy it now or classified advert, by hobbyist and business sellers in the UK.
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Members must be 16 or over to buy (16 and 17-year-olds with a parent or guardian’s agreement); sellers must be 18 or over.
Business sellers show their address, company details and pet-selling licence to buyers. Seller ratings run from 0 to 100: +1 for each positive feedback, −1 for each negative.
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