# Need some help with new plant purchase



## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

I just purchased this little pack of Cryptocoryn Wendti,its in some kind of gel,this is my first fish tank and my first attempt at using plants.There seems to be a lot of them in there more than i need for this small 5,5 ,i want to put most of them in my other 6.7 book shelf but it is not set up yet,can i put these all in the 5.5 tank that is in the pic and transfer some of them later when i have the other tank set up.I don't know what i am doing do these need to be planted deeply,do i have enough substrate and do i need to buy any type food for them.If i don't plant them all in the tank can i plant the remaining plants in a small pot with dirt from my yard until i am ready to use them.


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## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

They would benefit from extra CO2 and you will need to add the occasional fertilizer.


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## Oldfishlady (Mar 1, 2010)

Those are great low light easy care plants.

Wash all the gel stuff off, trim the roots if needed and remove any bad/dead leaves.

Its better to plant them shallow than deep-You want the crown of the plant to be slightly above the substrate line.

Plant as many as you can in your 5gal and you can allow the rest to float until the other tank is ready. Or, any container of water to keep them underwater so they can go through the leaf change if needed and place in a nice sunny window will work....

Depending on how they were grown at the nursery-they may or may not go though a leaf change. If grown above the water-you may see the current leaves die back and new underwater leaves form/grow. Submersed-vs-emersed growth that is normal.

They are root feeders and you may need to add root tabs per label directions since that can vary between brands.
They will grow fine without injecting CO2-but they do need at least 6500k color temp light on 10-12h/day photoperiod.

As for planting them in the garden-depends on the garden-they need to be in a high humidity location with their roots totally submerged in water.


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## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

Liquad ferts really help mine are so healthy.


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## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

P.S. I keep many types of Crypts and I got my rotala walchai that way but pretty sure mine was falsely labeled.


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## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

Thank's OFL for all your help,can i use liquid fert as ChoclateBetta has suggested ,the reason i am asking i seen some negative reviews on amazon that it turned the tank water dark green and brown for some people.


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## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

What brand of liquid fert are you using or would recommend .


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## Oldfishlady (Mar 1, 2010)

Seachem has a great line of plant products, I have not personally used them since I don't need any added ferts in my system-but this is what other member recommend the most.

You really don't need the water column food-it might cause algae issue-Root tab is what I would recommend for crypts.


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## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

Do these crypts grow very big will they block my rocks when they grow,should i plant them in the back behind my rocks or to the side of them or can i just place them all over the tank.


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## starrlamia (May 3, 2012)

they grow fairly tall, i would plant them in the backs or sides for a tank that size.


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## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

Thanks Starrlamia ,i am doing a water change today so i will plant them to the back and sides as you suggested .


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## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

The instructions on the bag do not mention how far apart they should be planted, is 2 or 3 inches apart okay.The instructions only mention,care level easy to moderate ,ph 5 to 7, lighting low to medium ,temp 72 - 82 deg.


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## starrlamia (May 3, 2012)

Yup that's fine. You can plant them any way.


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## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

Well there was about 3 or 4 in the pack ,just my luck there were no roots on them so i just shoved them in the gravel i know your not supposed to do that but there are no roots for the gravel to hold them down ,so i wasted 7 dollars, i will just leave them and see what happens .I think i will try anubias nana next ,can this be tied to a piece of slate.


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

some crypts stay fairly small...


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## starrlamia (May 3, 2012)

aokashi said:


> some crypts stay fairly small...


 yeah some do, but i wouldnt put them at the front of a 5.5 gallon unless you didnt mind the plant blocking the back of your tank, personally I have 6" tall crypts at the front of my 20l but normally they are a mid-background plant.


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

id say mid ground and to the sides of the tank is a better bet. leave the backfor stem plants.


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## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

I am new at this i just stuck them on the sides of the tank i don't think they will grow as they had no root's ,and the gravel is not very deep the slightest touch and they will come out.,i could not tell they had no roots when i bought them it was all encased in some thick gel.Here is where i put them i guess i'll wait and see.The package says plants suited for lower lighting in a betta tank ,i am using a small strip light that my brother gave that once belonged to a friend of his ,the light says aqua glo 15 watt 14" is this light good enough for plants it is a single tube .


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

it should be fine. watch the plabt though. it should put out new roots. but if it rots... pull it out immediately.


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## SpookyTooth (Dec 23, 2011)

As you mentioned the gel I would assume that these are vitro plants, grown via tissue culture; if that is the case they may die back as they adjust to their life underwater as the vast majority of tissue culture grown plants are grown in air-tight, sterile containers with high humidity and no water.

This species of crypt is absolutely lovely though, I hope it grows well for you


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## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

This is the first plant i have bought ,but i guess you are right about the culture thing because on the label it says guaranteed to be free of snails ,pests and diseases.


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## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

Thanks Aokashi i will be keeping an eye on it,my fish had or maybe still has fin rot but not sure i gave him the salt treatment for 9 days as OFL suggested and i am using IAL,i came across one of your posts that you said your fish had fin rot and was healing very slowly because of hard water,could this be the case for my me ,as i also live in Queens.OFL did ask me if hard water but i had no test kit for that.


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

Queens NYC water is actually very soft. infact I believe the GH is 0. my water is hard due to other reasons. lol


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## 914joe (Jul 21, 2012)

Thanks at least now i know the water is soft here ,but why is your water hard is it the plumbing or something else.I just want to make sure i don't have hard water because i don't see much improvement with my betta yet,i am trying to avoid using meds.


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## ao (Feb 29, 2012)

I keep it harder for the invertebrates...anddd i havent done a water change for two months *blush*
but the fish is happy and obviously doesnt care much about how his fins is. So Ive decided it doesnt matter too much...


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