Helfer's Sedge

Cyperus helferi

Long grass-like leaves that sway in the current — the closest thing in the hobby to a stand of underwater reeds. One of the very few sedges that live fully submerged.

Light: medium
Difficulty: medium
Height: 20 – 30 cm (7.9 – 12 in)
Temperature: 15 – 30 °C (59 – 86 °F)

Leaf colour: green
Plant type: rosette
Growth rate: slow
CO₂ demand: medium
Tolerates light: medium – high
pH: 5 – 7
Carbonate hardness: 0 – 10 °dKH
General hardness: 0 – 30 °dGH
Placement: background, midground +1 background, midground, specimen
Propagation: plantlets on the inflorescence +2 plantlets on the inflorescence, division, daughter plants
Grows emersed: yes

Appearance

Narrow green ribbon leaves 20–30 cm long grow from a rosette a hand's width across. The whole plant moves with the flow, which is the main reason it is planted.

Keeping

Moderate demands: it wants decent light and answers well to carbon dioxide; growth is slow, so pruning is rare. Water movement suits it — in a still tank the leaves collect dirt and algae.

Placement

The middle or back of the tank, singly or in a small group; it works as a soft screen in front of the back wall without blocking light like broad-leaved plants do.

Propagation

Young plants form on the flower stalk and can be separated once they have roots; a large rosette can also be divided.

Water conditions match

The water suits 841 of 1249 species in the catalogue — these are the ones people look up most often.

Butterflyfish Julii Corydoras Red-finned Parotocinclus Gastromyzon monticola Egg-shaped Goldfish Flame Tetra Gardner's Killifish African Tetra Hypsolebias picturatus Common Zacco Labeo Bicolor Gambusia Flying barb Gastromyzon scitulus Albino Zebra Danio Geophagus Brokopondo Homaloptera bilineata Red-tailed Rasbora Boraras naevus Lampeye Killifish Spotted Raphael Catfish Corydoras melanotaenia Festivum cichlid Pseudomugil paskai

Will eat this plant

These species damage plants, especially when their diet is short of vegetable food.

Bengal Loach Zebra Loach Burmese Border Loach Emperor Botia Marbled Headstander Pellegrin's Leporinus Leporinus striatus False Black Tetra Common Metynnis Mylossoma duriventre Red Whiptail Catfish Moonlight Gourami Melanotaenia parva

Will uproot it

These species dig through the substrate and pull rooted plants out.

Marble Loach Peacock Eel Forktail Loach Guntea Loach Long-nosed Loach Horseface Loach Pearlscale Black Moor Goldfish Shubunkin Painted Pleco Featherfin Synodontis Reddish Mystus Catfish Blue Acara Geophagus altifrons Geophagus winemilleri Pearl Cichlid Red-spotted Cichlid Haplochromis philander Red Chromide Jack Dempsey cichlid

Matching water does not mean the fish will leave the plant alone.

The same plant with a different look: light, water and care are shared with the species.

Other varieties: Cyperus helferi Topf

Scientific and other names, conservation status

Cyperus helferi: Boeckeler
Family: Cyperaceae

Helfer's Sedge

Tank conditions

Care and keeping