Echinodorus Cordifolius

6 reviews
Sale price
$8.99
Regular price
$19.99
You save
55%

Emersed Growth: Bare-root Plants

In stock and ready for shipping
Echinodorus Cordifolius Radican Sword / Creeping Burhead APF Aquarium Plants Factory®

Echinodorus Cordifolius

Emersed Growth: Bare-root Plants

Sale price
$8.99
Regular price
$19.99

Large heart-shaped leaves on long stalks. Echinodorus cordifolius — the Radican Sword — is one of the biggest and fastest-growing swords we carry, and one of the few that will happily push leaves out of the water and flower in an open tank.

What You'll Receive

  • Bare-root plants | loose, bare-root plants
  • Bunch plants | bundle with foam and lead weight
  • Potted plants | potted plants with rockwool and net pot

Plant Profile

  • Common name — Radican Sword, also known as Spade-leaf Sword, Creeping Burhead
  • Scientific nameEchinodorus cordifolius
  • Origin — Mexico, the West Indies, Central and South America, and the southeastern United States
  • Placement — Midground to background
  • Mature height — 10-20 inches
  • Growth rate — Fast

Care

  • Difficulty — Beginner, provided you feed the roots
  • Light — Medium
  • CO₂ — Not required
  • Water — 68-82°F, pH 6.5-7.5
  • SubstrateRequired. Heavy root feeder — root tabs or aquasoil under the crown.
  • Growth habit — Amphibious rosette; readily grows emersed
  • Propagation — Adventitious plantlets on aerial floral stalks

Grower's Notes

  • It is fast and it is large — plan accordingly. Cordifolius is the quickest-growing sword we sell and reaches 20 inches. In anything under 20 gallons it will fill the tank and shade everything else out within a season. In a big tank, that vigour is exactly what you want.
  • It wants to leave the water. Given the chance it sends leaves above the surface and flowers, which is why it works so well in open-top tanks and paludariums. If you want it fully submerged, keep the lid on and trim any emergent leaves.
  • Feed it at the roots, generously. A fast heavy root feeder strips an inert substrate quickly. Root tabs or aquasoil, and expect to top up more often than with a slow sword.
  • Plant the crown at substrate level, never below. Cover the roots and leave the growing point exposed — a buried crown rots from the centre.
  • It propagates from floral stalks, not runners. Settled plants throw tall stalks carrying plantlets, and on a fast grower like this they appear readily. Leave each attached until it has four or five leaves and its own roots, then cut it free.

Want to go deeper? Read our complete Amazon Sword (Echinodorus) Care Guide.

Notes

Disclaimer: Pictures are not the actual plants you will receive, but a sample representation. Unless specific, we don't guarantee aquatic plants will be free of pests, pesticides, grow emerged, or submerge.

Never release aquarium plants into natural waterways.

 

Shipping Policy

At Aquarium Plants Factory, we carefully package and ship all orders to ensure plants and livestock arrive healthy and ready to thrive.


Order Processing Time

Most orders are processed within 1–2 business days after payment is received.

Orders placed on weekends or holidays will be processed on the next business day.

Orders containing out-of-stock, pre-order, or backorder items may require additional handling time.

Once your order ships, tracking information will be sent to your email.


Shipping Schedule

Live Plants

Live plant orders ship Monday through Saturday when using United States Postal Service (USPS).

Most plant-only orders ship within 1–3 business days, excluding products that are out of stock, pre-order, or backorder.

Estimated USPS delivery time is 2–5 business days, depending on your location.


UPS Express Shipping

We offer the following UPS expedited shipping options:

UPS 2-Day Air®

Estimated delivery: 2 business days

Please note that UPS 2-Day Air® is not a guaranteed service in the event of carrier delays, weather disruptions, or operational issues.

UPS Next Day Air®

Estimated delivery: 1 business day

This service is guaranteed by UPS according to their service guarantee policies.

UPS expedited orders ship Monday through Wednesday only to ensure packages arrive within the same week and avoid weekend delays.

Please note that orders require 1–2 business days of handling time before shipment.

To help ensure same-week delivery, please place UPS orders on or before Tuesday at 6:00 AM Pacific Time (PT).


Live Animals Shipping

Live animal orders ship Monday through Wednesday only.

This schedule ensures animals arrive within the same week and do not remain in transit over the weekend.

Handling time for live animal orders typically ranges from 1–5 business days, depending on:

  • Weather conditions

  • Livestock health

  • Shipping destination

Tracking information will be emailed once the order has been shipped.


Free Shipping

We offer Free Shipping on eligible orders over $150 within the contiguous United States.

Estimated delivery time for free shipping orders is 2–5 business days.

If your order contains both live plants and live animals, the shipment may be combined and the appropriate shipping rate will be shown at checkout.

Free Shipping is not available for customers located in:

  • Alaska

  • Hawaii

  • Puerto Rico

  • Guam

  • U.S. Virgin Islands

Customers in these locations must select Expedited or Express shipping options at checkout.


Delivery Time Estimates

Delivery times shown at checkout are estimates provided by the shipping carrier.

While we work hard to ship orders quickly, delivery times may vary due to factors outside of our control, including:

  • Weather conditions

  • Carrier delays

  • High shipping volumes

  • Transportation disruptions

Aquarium Plants Factory is not responsible for shipping delays caused by the carrier.


Delayed or Lost Packages

Occasionally, shipments may take longer than expected.

A package is considered lost only after 15 business days (approximately 3 weeks) from the ship date.

If a package is confirmed lost by the carrier, we may offer a 50/50 replacement, meaning:

  • Aquarium Plants Factory covers 50% of the replacement cost

  • The customer covers 50% plus shipping


Address Accuracy

Customers are responsible for providing a complete and accurate shipping address when placing an order.

Please ensure that your address is correct when using payment methods such as:

  • Credit / Debit Card

  • PayPal

  • Apple Pay

  • Google Pay

  • Amazon Pay

  • Shopify Pay

  • AliPay

Orders returned due to:

  • Incorrect address

  • Refused delivery

  • Failed delivery attempts

may not be eligible for a refund.


Order Cancellations

If you need to cancel an order, please contact us as soon as possible.

Orders can only be canceled before they have been shipped.

Once an order has been shipped, it can no longer be canceled.


Returns

Due to the sensitive nature of live goods, all sales are final.

We do not accept returns or exchanges for:

  • Live plants

  • Live animals


For any shipping questions, please contact us before placing your order.

Aquarium Plants Factory
https://www.AquariumPlantsFactory.com

What We Guarantee

24-Hour Live Arrival Guarantee — We guarantee that live plants and live aquatic animals will arrive alive. In the rare case of a Dead on Arrival (DOA), you must notify us within 24 hours of the delivery time recorded on the carrier's official tracking page. The guarantee is void after that 24-hour window, as condition can no longer be attributed to transit.

How to Submit a Claim

  1. Take at least 2 clear, well-lit photos of the affected items in their original, unopened, sealed packaging, plus a photo of the shipping label on the box.
  2. Email your photos and order number to hello@aquariumplantsfactory.com within 24 hours of delivery.
  3. Do not photograph plants or animals after they have been unpacked, planted, or introduced to your aquarium — once an item enters your aquarium's ecosystem, it is no longer covered.

Approved claims are resolved with a replacement, store credit, or refund at our discretion, under the terms of our Refund Policy. Each item is eligible for one replacement only — replacements are final and we cannot replace a replacement.

Conditions That Void the Guarantee

  • Incorrect or incomplete shipping address (vacant address, missing apartment number, or any issue that prevents delivery)
  • Packages marked "invalid address," "undeliverable," refused, or returned to sender
  • Packages left unclaimed, held at a carrier facility at the customer's request, or not retrieved promptly after delivery — live goods must be brought indoors and unpacked the day they arrive
  • Carrier delays, weather events, or delivery exceptions once the package has left our facility
  • Shipments to freight forwarders or package-forwarding services

Providing accurate, complete shipping information and monitoring your tracking are essential to keeping your guarantee valid.

Please note: the Live Arrival Guarantee covers arrival only. We cannot guarantee ongoing success — aquarium environment, water quality, nutrients, temperature, lighting, filtration, and CO2 all affect long-term results.

What We Can't Guarantee

  1. Pest-free plants (potted & bare-root): Although our plants are grown in our own clean greenhouse, we cannot guarantee they are 100% free of snails, algae, or other hitchhikers. We recommend rinsing and quarantining all plants before adding them to your aquarium. Tissue culture (in vitro) plants are the exception — they are grown in sterile lab conditions, are 100% free of pests, algae, and disease, and have never been in contact with any aquarium.
  2. Pesticide-free plants: We use homemade, organic pest control in our greenhouse and never use copper-based pesticides, which are toxic to invertebrates such as snails, crabs, and shrimp. However, we cannot guarantee plants are entirely pesticide-free — always rinse and quarantine before use in invertebrate tanks.
  3. Your aquarium's success: We are not responsible for your aquarium inhabitants, including fish, shrimp, snails, and turtles. Please quarantine all plants before use.
  4. Growth form: Unless specified, we do not guarantee plants will grow emersed or submersed in your particular setup.

Please review your state's regulations on restricted plants, as we are committed to not shipping plants that are restricted in your area. Do not release any plants into the wild or waterways, as this can harm local ecosystems by introducing invasive species.

Your cooperation in protecting the environment is appreciated. For continuously updated information, refer to the USDA State Noxious Weed list here.

Thank you for your responsible commitment to environmental preservation.

Customers praised this aquarium plant as "amazing" with excellent quality and healthy growth. New leaves sprout quickly during conversion, with bronze aquatic leaves emerging before green ones. Some noted plants arrived small with fewer roots, though healthy. Ideal for native tanks, South American setups, and paludariums.

  • These are amazing plants and show piece plants for a native tank or South American set up.
  • New leaves are already sprouting.
  • Best plant in my aquarium so far will buy again.
  • 5 stars: 5 (83%)
  • 4 stars: 1 (17%)
  • 3 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 2 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 1 star: 0 (0%)
T
Theresa (United States)
New Growth

Immersed conversion started on the day of arrival; Fluval Stratum and dosing with SeaChem Excel. The usual wilting from conversion but new leaves are already sprouting.

S
Sammy M. (United States)
Happy customer

This is the second time I’ve ordered from APF and I’m impressed with the size and quality of their plants along with their punctual shipping.

D
Daniel C.(. (United States)
Best plant

Excellent seller best plant in my aquarium so far will buy again

P
Pam H. (United States)
small but seems healthy

A little small, with not many roots, but seems healthy. Maybe why the price was marked down.

R
Robert

Nice plants

A
Andrew

Wow! These are amazing plants and the aquatic leaves emerge bronze, long before the green, emergent leaves show any signs of wear. These are show piece plants for a native tank or South American set up, paludariums, and tall aquariums.

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Frequently Asked Questions