About the species

Eleocharis acicularis is the hair grass that turns the substrate into a swaying, grass-green meadow. The species occurs naturally across much of the world and is one of the least demanding carpeting plants in the hobby. Its thread-fine blades grow 6–15 centimetres tall and spread by short runners into a dense mat.

Facts

• Latin name: Eleocharis acicularis
• Plant type: Carpeting plant
• Origin: Widespread worldwide
• Height: 10–15 cm
• Growth rate: Medium
• Position: Midground

Light requirement

Low light requirement. It manages with the lighting that comes with most aquariums and is happy in partial shade behind or beneath taller plants. Strong lighting does not harm it, but raises the risk of algae on the leaves because the plant cannot use all the available light.

CO₂ & nutrition

Manages entirely without added CO₂, which makes it as suitable for a simple aquarium as for an aquascape. Liquid carbon or injected CO₂ speeds up growth but is never a requirement. Dose an all-round fertiliser with iron and micronutrients every week.

Planting

Divide the contents into many small tufts and place them two to three centimetres apart across the whole area. The more tufts you split it into, the faster the carpet knits together. Use tweezers and press the roots down without burying the leaves.

Rinse all the gel off in lukewarm water before planting, otherwise it can cause bacterial cloudiness. The cup holds many small plants — divide them up and plant them in several portions.

Care & propagation

Trim the carpet with curved scissors once it starts building upwards — that keeps it low and dense and stops the lowest shoots dying from lack of light. Siphon off the clippings right away, otherwise they root where you do not want them.

Position in the aquarium

Its height makes it a classic midground plant. It works nicely as the transition between low foreground plants and tall background plants, and looks best in a group or around a piece of wood.

Difficulty level

🟢 Easy — grows in most aquariums without CO₂ and under ordinary lighting.

Delivery format

Delivered as 1-2-Grow! — a laboratory-grown cup holding many small plants in nutrient gel. Because the plant is cultivated in vitro it is completely free of snails, algae, planaria and pesticides, which makes it the safest choice for a shrimp aquarium.

Recommendation

Our favourite grass carpet for beginners: it manages without CO₂ and thrives in most aquariums. Give it an open area with no shade from taller plants — in practice that is all it asks for.