Lilaeopsis brasiliensis
Tight bright-green grass-like carpet, looks like a miniature lawn. Sister species L. mauritiana grows slightly taller. Patient growers are rewarded with one of the most natural-looking foregrounds available. Skip CO₂ at the cost of speed, not appearance.
Micro Sword (Lilaeopsis brasiliensis) is a carpet / grass-like aquatic plant for the foreground of a planted tank. It reaches 3–7 cm under good conditions and grows at a slow to medium rate. Light: medium to high. CO₂: optional. Target 20–28 °C, pH 6.0–7.5, and 2–15 dGH. Substrate: Nutrient-rich substrate + root tabs. Propagate via runners.
Care at a glance
Tight bright-green grass-like carpet, looks like a miniature lawn. Sister species L. mauritiana grows slightly taller. Patient growers are rewarded with one of the most natural-looking foregrounds available. Skip CO₂ at the cost of speed, not appearance.
By Mike ElmiraUpdated 2 min read
Part of our complete guide to the planted aquarium.
The parameters that decide whether micro sword fits in your tank.
Apiaceae
Carpet / Grass-like
Foreground
Nutrient-rich substrate + root tabs
Runners
Marshes and stream banks of southern Brazil
South America (Brazil, Argentina)
Tank-mate safety and the species this one is documented to thrive (or fail) alongside.
Hard-won lessons from the tank.
Plant tissue-culture clumps in 2x2 cm portions spaced 3 cm apart in a grid. Carpet completes in 8–12 weeks with CO₂, 16+ weeks without. The grass-like texture is one of the most natural-looking foregrounds available — pairs beautifully with stone hardscape in iwagumi-style scapes.
What can go wrong and how to spot it.
Failure modes, in order of how dramatic the fix is.
Pale blades: iron deficiency. Slow spread: insufficient light or nutrient-poor substrate. Yellowing tips: nitrogen + iron.
Hair algae attaches to old lower-blade portions. BBA on bases of dense clumps. Stable CO₂ (if dosed) and proper light cycle prevent issues.
The practical routine, read top to bottom.
Root feeder. Root tabs every 4 months essential. Iron dosing for colour. CO₂ optional but accelerates spread significantly.
Rarely needed for height. Trim runners that escape your intended planting boundary. Once dense, the carpet is self-maintaining.
Where it comes from, how it behaves, and the variants you'll see at retail.
Where it lived before it came home.
Shallow streamside pools across Brazil and Argentina. Often grows partially emersed in damp soil; fully submerged in seasonal floods.
Compact emersed habit with stiffer blades. Wholesale arrives emersed via tissue culture; submerged form is slightly softer and shorter.
Tiny inconspicuous emersed flowers; doesn't flower submerged.
The named cultivars and the lookalikes worth flagging.
L. brasiliensis (most common, 3–7 cm tall), L. mauritiana (slightly taller, narrower blades, called 'New Zealand grass'), L. macloviana (broader leaves). All similar care.
Constantly confused with Cryptocoryne parva (similar foreground rosette but completely different family). Eleocharis acicularis (needle hairgrass) is also similar but has cylindrical rather than flat blades.
Direct answers to the questions search engines and AI assistants surface most often about this species.
CO₂ requirement: optional. Light requirement: medium to high. Under low-tech conditions the plant grows at a slow to medium rate.
Micro Sword (Lilaeopsis brasiliensis) needs medium to high light. Run a photoperiod of 6–8 hours; longer photoperiods invite algae unless CO₂ and dosing are dialled in.
Position: foreground. Substrate: Nutrient-rich substrate + root tabs It typically reaches 3–7 cm.
Propagation method: Runners. Micro Sword is a carpet / grass-like plant.
Target 20–28 °C, pH 6.0–7.5, and 2–15 dGH. Flow tolerance: low to medium.
Difficulty: 3/5. Intermediate, stable parameters and a mature tank matter.
A planted tank is a system. Pair this plant with one entry from each other pillar to plan the whole scape.
