Living Soil

Aquarium and fully submerged plants

Cryptocoryne: substrate and planted tank guide

Cryptocoryne is in Living Soil's Aquarium and fully submerged plants group. Plants growing entirely underwater in a tank: a thin layer of soil under a gravel cap, which is a different job from a pond basket. Its guide gathers what published references say about water hardness, light, planting bed, feeding, spotting problems, cautions and mixes, with 5 mixes that suit it.

What the cryptocoryne guide covers

Every item carries the reference behind it. Where references disagree, the guide shows both.

  • Water hardness1
  • Light1
  • Planting bed3
  • Feeding2
  • Spotting problems6
  • Cautions4
  • Mixes3

The count is how many sourced items each part of the guide holds.

Substrates that suit cryptocoryne

Aquarium soil layer for hard water

A published, referenced method for a soil bed under a planted tank. Once it is set up, the tank's fish keep the plants fed, and this version suits hard water best.

Aquarium soil layer for soft water

A published method for a soil bed under submerged plants, and it may well be the better pick for soft water. Once it is set up, the fish do the feeding.

3 mixes are made just for cryptocoryne, inside its guide.

Feeds made for it

Laterite additive for planted tanks

A grower favorite that releases iron and other nourishment slowly, right where fine roots grow. Suits Amazon swords and cryptocorynes. Growers disagree on it, and the app shows both sides.

Each mix comes with the reference behind every figure, measured for your batch, pots or bed.

Good to know

  • pH: the references give 6.6 to 6.6 for aquarium and fully submerged plants in general.
  • The mistake to avoid: Pushing houseplant fertilizer sticks or water lily tablets into the soil under submerged plants. Bacteria turn their sulfate into hydrogen sulfide, which can kill plant roots.
  • Also known as: crypt, crypts, cryptocoryne wendtii, cryptocoryne balansae, water trumpet, crypt rot, cryptocoryne care and emersed crypts

Questions

What is the best substrate for cryptocoryne?

Living Soil lists 5 mixes that suit cryptocoryne, each from a published reference. They include Aquarium soil layer for hard water and Aquarium soil layer for soft water. 3 are made just for it. The app measures any of them for your batch, pots or bed.

What pH does cryptocoryne need?

The references give pH 6.6 to 6.6 for aquarium and fully submerged plants in general.

Is the cryptocoryne guide free?

Its overview is free: what the guide covers and which mixes suit it. Opening the full guide takes credits, and the app shows the price before you confirm. Credits never expire.

Grow cryptocoryne on the right substrate.

Look up the full cryptocoryne guide free, and unlock it only if it is what you need.

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