About the species

Eleocharis pusilla 'Mini' is the lowest of all the aquarium grasses — the blades stop at three to five centimetres. The variety reached Tropica from the American aquarist Tom Barr and is shorter still than ordinary Eleocharis parvula. Growth is slow, but that is precisely why the mat hardly ever needs trimming.

Facts

• Latin name: Eleocharis pusilla 'Mini'
• Plant type: Carpeting plant
• Origin: Cultivated variety
• Height: 3–5 cm
• Growth rate: Slow
• Position: Foreground

Light requirement

Medium light requirement. Reckon on around 0.5 W per litre or a modern mid-range LED unit. Too little light gives sparse, stretched shoots and pale leaves, while the right amount keeps the plant compact and richly coloured.

CO₂ & nutrition

Added CO₂ is recommended — Tropica reckons 6–14 mg/l as a medium requirement. The plant can be grown without, but then grows more slowly and loses some of its colour. Supplement with liquid fertiliser weekly and keep iron and potassium levels up.

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 low mature size makes it a foreground plant. Place it right at the front where nothing shades it, and let it form a continuous surface in front of the taller plants.

Difficulty level

🟡 Moderate — wants stable lighting and regular fertilisation to look its best.

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

The most reliable grass carpet for nano aquariums and small aquascapes, where taller grasses quickly dominate. It wants plenty of light straight from above to lie flat rather than stretch upwards.