java moss

Ok so here is a question I feel dumb asking. But what is the best way to grow java moss? I have one tank it grows great in. I have it in a moss wall and its coming in strong, I have it on a rock as well as a piece of wood and its growing and also just laying on the ground hopfully starting a carpet. But then in three other tanks its either just doing nothing or dying like crazy I just can't keep it the alive. Water peramiters are all the same. The only difference is light. Some is no light in spots to naturally high light. I just can't grow it outside of my one tank. And I'd like to use it for the fry to hide in as well as a filter plant. But what its doing is turning a really ugly brown with dark green tips, the tips will make bright green new growth but then about a month later the brown disintegrates and the green then dies. this is all after about two to three weeks of moving it. Is there a trimming technique i don[t know? should I try to remove the brown? even though its most of it or is there just something I'm doing wrong? also any suggestion on any other low to med light plants that wont grow super tall but nice and thick I could use for fry that I might have better luck with? also this is the only plant I have in the tanks that dies, everything else takes off like crazy.

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Permalink Reply by PaducahFishFan on August 12, 2011 at 12:07pm

I would start trying to isolate the X factor.

Are the filters the same? Is the water quality the same? Do you have a fish that eats it before it can start?

I don't like moss because it can take over and choke out the other plants. It goes in my duckweed category of... that was fun but it's too much work to want to do that again.

I may be thinking the same thing soon about shrimp. I've got shrimp booming in my large tank and I'm concerned about having to start harvesting them out for someone else.

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Permalink Reply by Jeremy Bingamon on August 12, 2011 at 7:22pm

Ya lighting is they only thing I can think of it being. It's only in tanks with bettas and shrimp. The tank it grows in and nothing at a spectacular rate has a single t8 8700k bulb then I have it in two tanks that it use to grow really well in when I first started using moss and that light is just natural light from a window. And it's not direct light either the sun is on the opposite side of my house. But it's the best light for growing everything else I have. It doesn't die either its just stagnant. Then there is my other tanks most of it dies I think from shock of the environment change but it does very slowly grow back if most of it made it threw the shock. But one tank has two 10k pc builds a red spectrum bulb and a 65k bulb and the other are just regular 13w 65k cfl screw in style bulbs

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Permalink Reply by Keith the Aquatard on August 13, 2011 at 12:56pm

I ended up ripping all the java moss out of one tank, and most of it out of another. It turned brown like yours is, and all it did was grow algae on the moss itself. I would sit and try to pick green algae out of the individual moss strands, and then I said, F*&^ it, java moss isnt that cool anyways. I kind of think of it as a condiment, too much and it drowns out the flavor everything else in the tank. I would try a different plant for a carpet plant, something that has an actual subterrainian root structure. I used crypt parva, seems to be doin ok, and it doesn't require the co2 and super crazy light light the glosso or baby tears. I think dwarf sag is similar too.

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Permalink Reply by frroK on August 15, 2011 at 10:45pm

yea I have some java moss also..im not too thrilled either. never gets really green. I'm actually thinking of getting some fissidens or some riccia see if that does better. I really like they way moss grows on wood. thats what IM trying to do now. it just takes forever to grrow...

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Permalink Reply by Jeremy Bingamon on August 15, 2011 at 10:55pm

It does take forever. But I had a pleasant surprise with the moss on some wood. I tied some off and had it there for like 5 months it never grew nd got really dark, one of the main things I can't get moss to do is stay really bright green. It turns dark green. Well anyways after it died off I pulled it off the wood and there was this really litte bit that was attached so closely and tight to the wood it was like the wood had a green vien on it. Well that's been growing for two or three months like that now and hopefully in a years time it will cover the whole piece of wood?. in my large tank I ripped out most of the moss except what's tied to my drift wood it looks like it starting to grow back stron and I replaced it with a new crypt some water wasteria (I know that's misspelled) a small piece of red ludiwgia, and a couple pieces of blue bell (can't remember it's actual name) but its also called something Willow. It's a nice grass plant. But I think I'm don't with moss except with my moss wall. Lol

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Permalink Reply by Jeremy Bingamon on August 15, 2011 at 10:57pm

Hygrophila Angustifolia or willow hygro. That's the grass like one.

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Permalink Reply by B. Graham on August 22, 2011 at 11:07pm

Around here there is a moss that grows in shallow flowing streams attached to rocks & wood . Grows in bright sun & shade. It called willow moss ( Fontinalis antipyretica) . There’s another kind called Christmas tree moss and I read it will grow up the side of your tank. That might be cool . Good luck.