Repens Staurogyne

Whether this stays a foreground plant is decided almost entirely by how much light reaches the substrate. Given enough, Staurogyne repens holds at 5 to 10 cm and throws out lateral shoots that knit into a low, bushy patch. Starved of it, the same plant turns the stems upward, stretches, and quietly becomes a midground species instead.

It comes from riverbanks and seasonal floodplains in Mato Grosso and Rondonia, in southern Brazil, and it is unusual among carpeting options for being a genuine stem plant rather than a grass. Growth radiates from a creeping main stalk, spreading by runners and lateral shoots, and the small oval leaves sit close together on stiff stems. The result has more visual weight than a fine carpet such as Eleocharis, which makes it useful where a hairgrass lawn would look thin against heavy hardscape.

Target 22 to 28 °C and pH 5 to 7.5, in soft to moderately hard water. CO2 injection is close to mandatory for a compact habit, though the plant survives without it in a looser, taller form. Growth is moderate rather than quick, which is a virtue here: the patch holds its shape for weeks between trims. Propagate by cutting a stem at the height you want, stripping the lower leaves, and pushing the cutting back into the substrate. The parent branches from the cut, so regular trimming thickens the patch instead of thinning it.