What does Crypt melt look like?

beviking

Senior Member, Sophomoric Attitude
Feb 16, 2002
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Several of my crypt leaves have develped mushy spots on them. Not the whole leaf, just a spot on the edge in various places. The spot eventually disintegrates and the rest of the leaf goes but it takes some time. I broke/cut (can't remember which now) a tip off that showed this and it hasn't deteriorated any further. Does this sound like crypt melt? From what I've read, I get the impression that all the leaves on the plant "melt" when it happens which isn't my case. I've looked and haven't found a description of it anywhere.
 
It doesn't have to be all of the leaves. IME, my undulata has melted halfway.

The leaves turn mushy and lose color. Then they just kind of wither away and melt off. I don't think I have any pictures of it, but I'll check...
 
Agreed, my leaves on my Wendti melt a little bit at a time, and or one leaf at a time when they are damaged. My understanding is that shock of some kind will cause them to melt all at once but I have never seen this. just the occasional leaf melting slowly.
Dave
 
Darn, I don't have any pics. Randomly, one day, my beautiful bronze wendtii turned to mush (I must have looked at it funny) and my prized retrospiralis disintegrated (I assume I damaged its roots during the move)...its slowly, oh so slowly, growing back.

But alas, no pics.
 
The important thing, to remember, IMO is that if you experience this 'melting' don't pull the plant or roots. Just try to remember where the plant was and then leave it alone. In many cases it will come back and grow beautifully.
A bit off topic, but similar in experience is the 'rest period' that Apons. and other bulb/tuber type plants go through. Leave them alone and many/most of them will begin to re-grow in anywhere from a few weeks to a couple of months.
I received a few Barclaya Longifolia(beautiful feathery, long red/pink leaved plants) from a friend on another forum and all of them 'died' within a week. I was very disappointed, but just figured they would just not do well for me and actually forgot about them. Every one of them has re-generated and multiplied. And they are growing like weeds.
In one tank, after 'losing' one I forgot where I had planted it, and when I did a major prune/re-arrangement of the tank, I dug up the tuber and it had little bulbs/seeds attached to it that came lose and got all over the tank.
I went ahead and completed the make over of the tank with what was in there and within 10 days the little seeds sprouted and are growing all over a 10 gallon tank.
I mention this to give hope and a different perspective to those who are ready to chuck 'dead' root systems and tubers.
Leave them alone in the case of Crypts., and in many cases moving the bulbs/tuber type plants is all it takes to get them off their butts and growing better than before. :dance

Len
 
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