# will my amazon sword take over my tank?



## laurenmekal (Nov 12, 2012)

i have a 5.5 gallon tank that i just added an amazon sword plant to. (see picture) it is the small green plant, the tall one is a silk fake.
someone told me that i should take the plant out because it will quickly outgrow my tank. my lighting is normal i guess, 15 watt bulb. my temperature is 76, thinking about getting a new heater to keep it higher. i have another 20 gal i could put it in, but i really want to keep it in my girls tank!
its her only live plant and i really want her to have one.
what is your opinion?
will it do more harm than good?


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## Aurie (Jun 22, 2012)

Where did you get it? I only ask because there are small swords that are like "Rosette swords" that stay small. Most Amazon swords are like 18" tall when you buy them. They're gi-normous already. I have one in my 29 and it is a foot tall now that it has it's under water leaves. Most people don't sell small amazon swords unless they're babies off of a large mama plant. 

Might be another species of amazon sword, not the tank buster large ones.
Might be a "rostette" or "compact" sword.. try google searches for em and see if they match yours.. those should stay small


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## Oldfishlady (Mar 1, 2010)

It can take over-but it will take over in any size tank-Amazon sword plants can get huge with an even bigger root ball.

I would leave the plant in the 5gal for now and keep it trimmed back until it gets too big. I pinch the larger leaves off my Amazon sword plants to keep them tidy in my smaller tanks. I have one in my 10gal that I have been able to keep small by pinching it leaves back for about 5 years. Be sure the crown is slightly above the substrate line for best growth and pinch the leaves back as close to the crown that you can. You might need to add a root tab every 3-4 months to keep the plant healthy as well as provide it with the proper color temp light bulb. You want a 5000-7000K (kelvin) Ideally 6500k for best growth on 10h/day photoperiod.

Nice job on your tank...


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## laurenmekal (Nov 12, 2012)

i got it from petsmart, i will check the container now. it just calls it an amazon sword, but it says small aquatic plant at the top. i willl check back in about 2 weeks to see if it has grown a bunch. if it has, i will try trimming and if it gets out of hand i will put it in my parents 20 gal. 
are there any other plants that would be a better suggestion?
i loved my moss i was so sad when it died because my tanks light went out for about two weeks, i couldnt get home to fix it until now. ): i really want to start trying to convert to an all planted tank. i wish i thought to do it from the beginning, but my fish started out as a college companion in a 3/4 gallon and is now my home pet in a luxurious 5.5  its going to be hard to transition to a planted tank with my fish in, but do you think it will be possible in a 5.5? i wont start the transition yet, probably over the summer when i am home from school longer.
im not sure how to start going from some silk to all planted, and any suggestions are greatly appreciated!!!


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## laurenmekal (Nov 12, 2012)

oh and thank you!! im trying hard. shes come very far from her tiny tank with a cave and one plant to this! i didnt realize i would get so attached to her!! and worry so much about her environment! it was just so awesome to know i raised her from a baby and now that ive seen her get so big i just want her to have the coolest environment.


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