Cryptocoryne wendtii · also called Wendt's Water Trumpet, Crypt Wendtii, Wendtii Green/Brown/Red
🐾 Pet-safe
Generally non-toxic to cats and dogs.
An extremely hardy, variable rosette crypt available in green, brown, and red forms, ideal for low-tech midgrounds. Famous for 'crypt melt' after a move, after which it regrows reliably from the rootstock.
ℹ️
Educational only. KinStation content is reviewed by licensed veterinarians but cannot replace an in-person exam. Always consult a licensed veterinarian or board-certified specialist for diagnosis, treatment, or any decision affecting your pet's health.
Quick facts
Category
Aquatic Plants
Family
Araceae
Native origin
Sri Lanka
Care difficulty
Beginner
Light
Low light
Pet toxicity
Pet-safe
Light
Low to medium light is ideal; it is one of the best plants for shaded, low-tech tanks. Higher light produces more compact plants and intensifies red/bronze coloration in the colored varieties but is not required.
Water
Temp 22-28 C (72-82 F), pH 6.0-8.0, soft to hard water (2-15 dGH); very adaptable. Benefits from a stable environment because sudden changes in water chemistry, light, or temperature trigger 'crypt melt.' Modest water-column dosing plus root feeding gives the best leaf color.
Soil & potting
A rooted rosette root feeder (NOT an epiphyte). Plant the crown into the substrate with the rosette base at the surface (do not bury the growing point or it rots). Thrives in nutrient-rich aquasoil; in inert gravel/sand add root tabs near the roots and re-dose periodically.
Environment — humidity, temperature, placement
CO2 is not required but improves growth rate and form in higher-light setups. Low to moderate flow. Use as a midground plant; clumps fill in over time. Grown emersed commercially, so expect melt-back of submersed-unsuitable leaves after planting, followed by new submersed growth.
Propagation
Spreads readily by runners that send up daughter plants around the parent; separate rooted runners and replant. Large clumps can be lifted and divided at the rootstock.
Toxicity detail
Safe for fish, shrimp, and snails (a shrimp-tank favorite). Like other aroids the sap contains insoluble calcium oxalate, so the raw plant is not meant to be eaten by pets, but it poses no hazard in the aquarium. Not invasive or restricted.
Growth stages
How this plant changes through its life — each stage often has its own care, diet and space needs.
Photo coming soon
Spore / recruit
Aquatic plants and macroalgae establish from spores, seeds, or drifting fragments that settle and attach to substrate or rock. Many freshwater aquarium plants and marine macroalgae also spread readily from a detached piece that takes root or holdfast.
Photo coming soon
Young growth
Young growth puts out its first blades, fronds, or leaves and anchors with roots or a holdfast. Submersed plants may look different from their emersed form, and growth speeds up as the plant adapts to the water's light and nutrients.
Mature
A mature aquatic plant or macroalga reaches its full size and characteristic shape, forming the dense growth, runners, or fronds typical of the species. Established plants spread to fill space and can be divided or trimmed to propagate.
Varieties & cultivars
Natural forms are the wild species; cultivars are selectively-bred colour or variegation forms of the same plant.
Natural forms3
Green
The wild-type wendtii with plain mid-green, slightly rippled lance-shaped leaves. The most adaptable form for aquariums.
💡 Undemanding; tolerates low light. Expect 'crypt melt' after planting, then it regrows.
Brown
Naturally occurring colour form with bronze-to-coppery-brown leaves and a textured, hammered surface. A warm-toned midground plant.
💡 Brighter light deepens the brown tones; shade pushes it toward green.
Red
Reddish-brown to wine-coloured leaf form, the most colourful wendtii, darkening under good light and nutrients.
💡 Needs higher light (and ideally some iron/CO2) to develop and hold the red; in low light it stays brownish.
Cultivars2
Tropica
Nursery-selected cultivar with strongly textured, hammered dark bronze-green to reddish leaves. Compact and slow but very ornamental.
💡 Moderate-to-high light brings out the bronze-red; otherwise care is the same as green wendtii.
Florida Sunset
Variegated wendtii with leaves marked in pink and cream over green, a rare patterned colour form.
💡 Higher light and nutrients help hold the pink variegation; slower and more delicate than plain wendtii.
