# Change in wendtii growth pattern--can anyone shed some light?



## B Considine (Dec 11, 2006)

I've had several wendtii in my tank for about 6 months now. All but one melted, and have started to recover, to varying degrees. But I'd like to know what's going on, and whether this is "normal".

Plants started out fairly tall, and green. Leaves were essentially smooth. Now, after melting, the new growth is brown/copper, the leaves are "crinkly" (don't know proper horticultural term) and are growing very close to the substrate. Also, the new leaves appear to have tiny white dots on them. I might say these dots look like pores.

In any case, growth is slow but steady. The new leaves are certainly more appealing than the ones the plants had when I purchased them. Just want to know if this change in basic look is something normal. Will the plants gain height, or is this low-growing form no big deal?

The only changes I've made since my original purchase is a switch from 24" T8 bulbs to a 36" T5 strip and the use of Excel.

Thanks.

Blaise


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## Squawkbert (Jan 3, 2007)

Sounds a lot like my crypts... http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=86102 shows a couple of pics of wendtii growth. The plant has since taken over the 5g, been moved to a 46g and is now ~18" tall, 6" diameter of plantlets, all crinkly leaves pointing more or less up. Their form is variable and is largely a function of lighting. More light>more brown. I would guess ferts play a role too. Mine got more crinkly after I started w/ a more serious fert program.

http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/2614/200703fts46gye5.jpg <link to ~1month old pic of it in the 46g. It is a lot bigger now. I don't characterize this as "slow growing". It's not as fast as Jungle val or Amazon Sword, but it's still pretty fast.


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## Purrbox (Jun 1, 2006)

Perfectly normal from what I understand. Like most plants crypts display different growth patterns depending on whether they are grown emersed or submersed. Many varieties like C. wendtii can appear very different depending on the lighting and other environmental factors in an aquarium. As Squawkbert mentioned more light tends to bring out the browns, reds, and copper tones in the crypts that are prone to this type of color change.


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## B Considine (Dec 11, 2006)

Thanks for the answers. I really like the brownish color and the leaf shape. But what about the height? Is the low growth a function of the increased light, or still left over from the melt? I'll point out that the leaves on the biggest crypt are probably 2 or 3 inches long. It's just that they're an inch above the substrate and new leaves also lay flat. I bought them as midground plants. At the risk of melting again, should I reposition them as foreground plants?

And what about the "pores" in the leaves?


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## Squawkbert (Jan 3, 2007)

Rearranging them a little shouldn't cause any melt - I think that's a function of significant changes in water parameters (I'm not sure if it's pH, hardness, fert. levels or some combination of these things that triggers a melt).

Given some time, they'll start to grow upwards - as a result of being "surrounded" if nothing else. What was weird with mine was that it sort of poked along, then it reached "critical mass" and nearly took over my 5g very quickly once it had ~12 plantlets in its bunch. It is also highly phototropic in that the leaves will just float around until the lights go out or they get shaded - they'll stand straight up looking for more light if they aren't getting enough.

If the pores in leaves continue, I'd post again or read the FAQs concerning plant deficiencies. Some claim that pores is caused by a lack of K (I think). Before you take action to fix the holes, do some research and have a good knowledge of what you're fertilizing w/.


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## B Considine (Dec 11, 2006)

I guess mine are in the "poking along" phase. I've got my entire crypt "zone" liberally laced with Flourish tabs, in the hope that some roots will hit one and the critical mass will commence. But I think my sag subulata has gotten there first.

The pores aren't holes through the leaves as much as tiny spots on the leaves--regularly spaced, uniform size. Not all the plants seem to have them, just the larger and better developed ones. I haven't noticed any deterioration in the leaves, which is why I characterized them as pores. I really have to scrutinze the leaves to notices them.

I'm really just getting into any sort of fertilizing regimen--Excel daily, Flourish tabs as needed, and Flourish with water changes. I've spoken to my local about the NPK thing, but was basically told "if you like how things are going, don't mess", which does make sense. I tend to over dabble, so I'm diligently trying to keep things as simple as possible for now.


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## ruki (Jul 4, 2006)

I finally have excellent growth on a Wentii red that I had in a 4 inch square pot. The snails in than were attacking it and the other crypts. Now that they are gone, this is the first one to look really good. 

Unfortunately, some of the others appeared to melt from the copper Snailacide stuff I addded to clear out the snails though.

I haven't heard others having such problems with snails though.


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