Want a foreground carpet that never needs trimming? Cryptocoryne parva is the smallest true Crypt in the hobby — short green rosettes that spread by runner into a neat low carpet, and grow slowly enough that you can leave them alone for months. This is the sterile tissue culture format, free of snails and algae.
What You’ll Receive
- Sold as a Tissue Culture Plants with vitamin liquid/gel
- Packaging May Vary! To be sent in either in vitro bag or cup
- Bag / Cup size: Approx. 2.5 x 2.5 inches
- Sustainable growth Crypt species
- Tissue Culture Technology | 100% Free from Snail, Algae, Pathogen, and Bacteria plus Extended Shelf Life on all in Vitro Plants
Plant Profile
- Common name — Parva Crypt, Crypt Parva
- Scientific name — Cryptocoryne parva
- Origin — Sri Lanka
- Placement — Foreground
- Mature height — 1–3 in
- Growth rate — Slow
Care
- Difficulty — Beginner
- Light — Low to medium
- CO₂ — Not required! One of the very few carpets that works in a low-tech tank
- Water — 72–82°F · pH 6.5–7.5
- Substrate — Required. Root feeder — nutrient substrate or root tabs
- Growth habit — Amphibious. Also grows emersed
- Propagation — Substrate runners
Grower’s Notes
- Patience is the whole job. Parva is the slowest carpeting plant we sell — a full foreground takes the better part of a year. In exchange it holds its shape without trimming and lasts for years.
- Divide the cup into small clumps and plant them with a little space between crowns. Packed tight, they shade each other before they spread.
- Expect it to melt after planting. Crypts drop their leaves on a change of conditions, then regrow from the roots over two to four weeks. Leave it alone through that.
- Feed at the roots. In inert gravel it survives but never builds the dense carpet you bought it for.
- Place it once. Crypts melt again every time they are moved, and Parva is slow enough that a second melt costs months.
- Rinse the gel off completely before planting or it clouds water and feeds algae in the first weeks.
Want to go deeper? Read our complete Cryptocoryne Care Guide.
Notes
- Pictures are not the actual plants you will receive, but a sample representation. Unless specific, we don't guarantee aquatic plants will be free of pests, and pesticides, grow emerged or submerge.
- Never release aquarium plants into natural waterways.
At a glance
- Free shipping on orders of $150 or more (after discounts) within the contiguous United States, by USPS.
- Free thermal protection is included with every shipment, all year round.
- Processing: most orders leave us within 1 to 2 business days. Tracking is emailed when your order ships.
- USPS (2 to 5 business days) ships Monday through Saturday.
- UPS 2nd Day Air® ships Monday through Wednesday. Order by Tuesday at 6:00 AM Pacific Time for same-week delivery.
- UPS Next Day Air® ships Monday through Thursday. Order by Wednesday at 6:00 AM Pacific Time for same-week delivery.
- Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands and military addresses ship by USPS at a flat rate shown at checkout.
- Weather holds: during extreme heat or cold we may hold live orders until it's safe to ship.
- We ship within the United States only.
Please bring live plants indoors and unpack them the day they arrive. Every live order is covered by our 24-Hour Live Arrival Guarantee.
The complete rules, including lost packages and address issues, are in our Shipping Policy. If anything conflicts, that policy applies.
Every live order is backed by our 24-Hour Live Arrival Guarantee. If a plant arrives dead, we'll make it right.
How it works
- Tell us within 24 hours of the delivery time on your tracking.
- Send photos of the affected items in their original, unopened packaging, plus a photo of the shipping label, to hello@aquariumplantsfactory.com with your order number.
- We'll make it right with a replacement, store credit or refund for the affected item.
Good to know
- Some melting or yellowing as plants adjust from greenhouse to aquarium life is normal. They regrow from healthy roots and rhizomes.
- Please bring your package indoors and unpack it the day it arrives.
- Free promotional items and shipping charges are not covered.
The complete rules, including what's covered and what voids the guarantee, are in our Returns, Refunds & Live Arrival Guarantee. If anything conflicts, that policy applies.
Please review your state's regulations on restricted plants, as we are committed to not shipping plants that are restricted in your area. Do not release any plants into the wild or waterways, as this can harm local ecosystems by introducing invasive species.
Your cooperation in protecting the environment is appreciated. For continuously updated information, refer to the USDA State Noxious Weed list here.
Thank you for your responsible commitment to environmental preservation.
Tissue culture aquarium plants arrive healthy and well-packaged with abundant plantlets. Customers said "27 plugs from one bag" and praised the value. Some noted gel residue on roots and inconsistent quantities. A few experienced melt or pest issues post-planting. Overall, shoppers appreciate quality, though slow growth is expected.
- I got 27 plugs from one bag, arrived very healthy and planted well without any melt.
- TC cups were beautiful specimens full of plantlets, more than enough for my intended purpose.
- Two cups was almost too much! There were so many beautiful plants, can't believe how healthy!
A
There was more here than I anticipated. I ordered two and ended up giving half of one to a friend. It arrived very healthy and planted well without any melt. I got 27 plugs from one bag.
P
Received 2 culture cups 9 days ago. In perfect shape. Got 19 good sized plugs. Lots of short roots. Very easy to plant. They're doing well. APF always sends 5 star plants. Culture cups give big return for your dollar.
S
I'm pleased with the number and health of the leaves packed into this tissue culture cup. Once I got most of the gel washed off (or 99% of it, anyway), I was surprised at how thin and sparse the roots were. After removing most of the gel by hand and soaking in aquarium water overnight, very little gel had dissolved and I had to rinse it off by hand. They're planted in Flourite black so we'll see how it goes.
J
Used the free shipping option. Quoted for 5 days but arrived in 4 to SC. Plant looked healthy. Few yellow leaves here and there but mostly healthy. I was able to break up the tissue culture cup into 25 pieces (size of a dime or smaller). Some of the roots were around an inch long in the container.
R
Hopefully will acclimate in a few weeks.
L
Well the plant was healthy. I have had no prior experience with tissue cultures. I rinsed the nutrient off the plants and planted them. Next morning the snails had eaten them down to nubbins! I think I need to study this a little closer before I try again. Rest of the plants are fine. This unfortunate issue did not impact your 5 stars, because it was my fault.
Y
There were a nice amount of plantlets but the gel was stuck on the roots.
D
The cryptocoryne parva was green and packaged well. Although the description said bag or cup, the bags I received did not have as many plants as would be expected. Probably more plants in a 2.5 X 2.5 cup. Pleased with the plants I did receive.
J
They arrived healthy and in really good shape I only gave four stars because it’s still too early for me to determine the end result.
G
Came well packaged and nice color. Will add to tank and see how it takes.
P
First time buying live plants online, couldn’t be more happy.
All Plants came extremely healthy (except for a couple leaves) , fast shipping, good price for the quality. Wouldn’t want to get any plants elsewhere.
K
This was my first time ordering from APF and I already feel like a loyal customer. The plants I received were in perfect condition!
H
Arrived in beautiful condition, easy to plant in sand.
M
This plant can be frustrating to try to get a hold of (its a slow grower), but I would say it is worth the wait. The leaves came in smaller than I was expecting but I believe that is partly due to these being culture tissue starters. These are my first crypts and I wanted to see what kind of crypt melt I would get. I waited a week after planting to review, and they seem to be doing great. There were a few yellow leaves to prune upon arrival, and maybe one per day or every other day (with 3 cups of tissue culture in the tank). I can see a few leaves starting to get lengthy so they have grown since getting planted in the tank.
B
These TC cups were beautiful specimens full of plantlets and I ended up having more than enough for my intended purpose. Because of that, I ended up adjusting my aquascape to accomodate for more of this plant. Will absolutely order again. In fact, I tried to, not even 1 week later, and they were sold out.
N
Was debating on getting an extra cup for my carpet. Glad I didn't! Two cups was almost to much! There were so many beautiful plants in there! Still can't believe how healthy they were. Ordered some shrimp from them because I was so impressed!
G
Got about 13 little plugs from one cup
c
All of my plants and shrimp arrived quick and healthy. Great customer service. Highly recommended ❤️
F
You get quite a bit of this plant for a very reasonable price! It came well packed, shipped quickly, and all of the plants were vibrant and healthy. They've only been planted for a couple days but everything seems to be going well!
S
Amazing as always! 6 large portions included. You guys are the best!
M
Perfect condition, great quality plants. No melt. Would recommend
M
These are beautiful little plants. I broke them up to place them around the tank. Its only been about a week, but so far so good! I love the look and would definitely recommend!
Z
Arrived in fantastic condition. They packed in a lot of these plants. Now I just need to wait a gazillion years for them to grow!
A
On average how many plugs come in one container. I have a 30cm cube and dont know how many to get. Thank you
Each cup has 4-6 plants!
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