# rjfurbank's 10g emersed crypt tank



## rjfurbank

Hi Everyone!

Have been wanting to try my hand at emersed crypt growth for a while now and finally got around to setting up a spare 10g today. I have been reading all the threads on APC and the blogs set up elsewhere on this and mainly followed the instructions from Ghazanfar Ghori's blog found here:

http://kryptokoryne.aquaticscape.com/2009/10/23/how-to-grow-cryptocoryne-emersed/

I plan on only keeping the usual crypts that I have growing in my submersed tanks for now so did not worry about the black water type set up. I was not sure what substrate to use and it seems people use all kinds of things. I would have liked to go w/ Aquasoil (as this seems to be the all-around preference) but didn't want to shell out for the shipping. So instead I went w/ a 50/50 mix of sphagnum peat and potting soil which I could get from the local big box for ~$10 which I have read others have had success with.

I am using a standard 10g glass aquarium w/ glass top; a standard 15W T8 strip light; and a heater to keep the water at ~72-73F. Will need to get a device to monitor the humidity. I've read that ~80% is desirable.

Here's some pics:

The substrate materials I used










The pots used--3" net pots from a local hydroponic store (and my friend who helped me set this up)









The potted crypts (and 2 ludwigia's for fun) from my aquariums









Just after filling









With my fun Xmas gift added









Any comments suggestions welcome.

Thanks for looking!

-Roy


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## maknwar

looking good!


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## rjfurbank

Thanks maknwar!

Just a quick update. RH holding around 70-75% and the water is heated to ~78. Looks like things are going well so far. I have at least one new leaf on each of the crypts except for 1.

It is interesting to me that not all the plants "melted" in the same way. All were transferred from submersed aquarium growth so I thought they would behave similarly in changing over to emersed. Most of the plants had 1 or two leaves drop before throwing up a new leaf. One of them (the big red wendtii in the right rear corner) dropped all of its leaves but now has a new leaf shooting up. One or two of them didn't lose any leaves at all.

So far so good. . .


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## rjfurbank

Ok -- time for an update on this set up.

Things have been growing well and I have been adding new plants as I come across them. Had some excitement when I ordered some new crypts and one c. beckettii came w/ the beginnings of a spathe. It actually opened a bit after I put it in the tank but quickly melted. . .

The plants I have now are:

c. wendtii (various versions)
c. undulata
c. parva
c. ciliata
c. beckettii
c. pontederifolia
c. lutea (not sure if this is the correct name but that's how I bought it)

Did a big clean up the other day and changed 100% of the water. Here are some pics:

set up before water change:









a few new ones:
c. ciliata









c. beckettii









w/ new water:









Thanks for looking!

-Roy


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## Ghazanfar Ghori

Looking good!


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## maknwar

Good growth!


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## rjfurbank

Thanks!


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## PeterE

Wow, is that moss beneath the crypts in the first photo? That looks pretty nice itself. This is a great crypt setup!


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## 954baby

Very nice!!!


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## rjfurbank

Thanks Everyone!



PeterE said:


> Wow, is that moss beneath the crypts in the first photo? That looks pretty nice itself. This is a great crypt setup!


The moss is just some Java moss from one of my submersed tanks. Was hoping to get some of the cool looking moss from the peat I see in some other set ups but no luck there.

-Roy


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## deftones2015

I wish my setup looked that clean lol


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## Ghazanfar Ghori

deftones2015 said:


> I wish my setup looked that clean lol


You and me both! LOL!
I clean my setup every 6 months or so - they look good for a month and then slowly start accumulating mosses and algae and who knows what!


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## WeedCali

Sorry for bringing back an old thread but i have a question. what are the liners you used in the net pots? im thinking of using this type of substrate for my setup.


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## FarCanal

Here's a link that may answer your question http://kryptokoryne.aquaticscape.com/2009/10/
Can't get those in Australia yet


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## rjfurbank

I got them at a local hydroponic shop. There are also many places online.

It's funny -- I was just thinking about updating this thread -- have had a few flowers lately and am getting ready to move the crypts to a larger tank. . .


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## WeedCali

you should definitely post some new pics


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## rjfurbank

WeedCali -- thanks for the interest. . . .

Have had a few spathes! My first was a wendtii that I only caught near the end of the cycle and didn't get any good shots. Since then I've had my C. pontederifolia (got this one from my LFS submersed) flower a couple times and recently my C. moehlmannii (got this one from Ghazanfar Ghori) had a spathe as well. Here are some pics: (hopefully these are correctly identified!)

C. moehlmannii


















C. pontederifolia


















The 10g is full and these two plants have leaves up against the top glass so I am planning to move all these plants to a larger set up. My friend had a used 38g that I was able to get. It's quite tall and should allow better growth for the larger plants. Also, it allows me to add some more. . .

Thanks for looking!

-Roy


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## Kai Witte

Yes, correctly identified. These 2 tend to grow fast/tall.



> what are the liners you used in the net pots?


An economy option would be to use coffee filters or, for small pots, tea bags (paper tissue, preferably unbleached) - they last long enough for a plant to stabilize the soil with its roots.


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## WeedCali

thanks for the coffee filter idea! i have another question too. what is the moss growing at the base of your plants?


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## rjfurbank

WeedCali said:


> thanks for the coffee filter idea! i have another question too. what is the moss growing at the base of your plants?


Just some random java moss that I added to some of the pots. Was hoping to get some cool moss growing from the peat as I'd seen in others' set ups on this site but no luck there . . .


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## Khamul1of9

Wow, nice setup! Great growth and very cool looking blooms on both. I congratulate you on your quick success.


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## rjfurbank

Khamul1of9 said:


> Wow, nice setup! Great growth and very cool looking blooms on both. I congratulate you on your quick success.


Thanks! Just set up the 38g and have some new crypts on the way from another forum member. Will post some pics of the new set up after I add the new specimens.


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## rjfurbank

Been a while. . . set up a second emersed tank for crypts (a 38g) and finally got a new spathe! The pontederifolia has been blooming fairly regularly and the moehlmannii has flowered a couple times.

Still have the 10g set up but using that to try to grow a few black water species.

Here's the new flower:

C. Ciliata:









Cool purple dots in the throat:









And the 38g tank: (the Ciliata is a monster!)









I recently started adding some osmocote fertilizer granules to the pots and some to the water and have noticed a dramatic increase in growth (especially the size of the leaves).

Thanks for looking!

-Roy


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## ferchu22

Wow, that's a huge crypt!! Nice setups and spathe Roy!!1
This makes me realise that I have to repot some of my crypts


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## rjfurbank

Thanks Fernando for the comment. I haven't had to repot any of mine yet although a few of the pots are getting quite full so probably should soon.


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