# Crpyt wendtii having to be replanted repeatedly



## Franco (Jun 25, 2010)

I have a red Crypt wendtii "Mi Oya" that I have to keep replanting in a new location. It does great for 3 months and then stops putting out leaves. I pull it up and plant it in a different place and it starts growing again without any melting. It is a lowtech MTS tank (more like a Walstad type) with crushed lava rock cap. I've moved it 3 times in 9 months. All of my other crypts do fine and aren't needing to be moved.
Is it using up all of the nutrients in the soil?
Is it just a goofy plant that doesn't want to grow like all of his other crypt neighbors?


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## ddavila06 (Jan 31, 2009)

i have something similar happen to my crypt wendtii red...it staid put for like a year and one day i was like "this darn thing isnt growing" so i moved it and next thing i know i had like 6-7 plantlets growing all over!! i also added a root tab, try the tab thing.. is it getting direct light or is it shaded?


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## Franco (Jun 25, 2010)

I use osmocote plus as root ferts and the plant has been in full light everytime I've planted/replanted it. Its put out 2 new leaves in the 4 days since I last moved it. It has never gotten very big though (4-5" max) before it quits growing and it doesn't have more than 3 inches of roots on it. My green wendtiis only get like 7 inches max but they are rooted like an 18" amazon sword. I got this Mi Oya off ebay for 99 cents and no shipping. It came as a 3/4 inch piece of rhizome and still hasn't put on more than 1/4" of rhizome in the 9 months I've had it. I think it is probably just a crappy plant.


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## EDGE (Feb 28, 2004)

Sounds like your plant is not getting enough nutrients. Does the root reach the mineral soil or just sits in the lava rock cap?

osmocote might be a bit too slow release for cryptocoryne.


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## Franco (Jun 25, 2010)

The roots grow straight down and then spread out through the soil. I may buy some root tabs but I have a 50 lb bag of osmocote + that I got for free so I'd rather not spend $8+ on a handfull of root tabs.


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## EDGE (Feb 28, 2004)

What is the NPK ratio for the osomocote? 

I wonder if the soil has been depleted. How old is the soil? If you are moving the plant around and getting growth right after move for a short period, then maybe the soil is depleted.


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## Franco (Jun 25, 2010)

I dont remember what the NPK of oscmocote is offhand but the tank is 9 months old. Its low-med light, no CO2, and the crypt hasn't really grown enough for me to think it is depleting the nutrients that much. It is the only plant in the tank including 4 other kinds of cypts that isn't doing awesome. Since all of the other plants are fine I'm betting the plant is just a crappy plant.


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## MacFan (Jul 30, 2006)

Anecdotally, it seems that crypts do better in slightly subdued light... in shaded areas of the tank. Having good water circulation helps spread nutrients and CO2 around. My crypts seem to grow slowly at times, but always well.


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## fishfan (Feb 19, 2006)

ddavila06 said:


> i have something similar happen to my crypt wendtii red...it staid put for like a year and one day i was like "this darn thing isnt growing" so i moved it and next thing i know i had like 6-7 plantlets growing all over!! i also added a root tab, try the tab thing.. is it getting direct light or is it shaded?


Me too with Wendtii green. Moved them, put in new tabs, and bingo.


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## Tex Gal (Nov 1, 2007)

Sounds like your crypt is not getting enough nutrition. Try aquariumplants.com total substrate pellets, They have NPK and trace elements. I love these. They work wonders for root feeder plants. I use them for my madacasgar lace and it has never in 8 years had a dormant period. All my crypts do great. 

Since you got the osmocote free then why not spend some money on pellets for the crypt. Surely the crypts have cost you something. You can use the osmocote out in your yard. It works great for flowers and such.


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## Franco (Jun 25, 2010)

Actually the crypts were all free as well. I found a brand new bird cage out by a dumpster and traded in to the LFS for store credit. I got wendtii green, wendtii bronze, some giant brown one with pink undersides, a couple walkeri luteas, 2 anubias nana petites, and some water sprite. After I got them home I was able to separate the crypts into at least 30 plants. Heck of a deal!


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## chad320 (Mar 30, 2010)

Did you add clay to your MTS? I found some clay that works wonders for my crypts.


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## Franco (Jun 25, 2010)

Yes, there is clay in the substrate that I found in a stream bed.


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