Yet another stupid question - Flame Moss

[CeeBee]

I've got flame moss in my tank, it's been there for several months and its never really done much.

I'm probably to blame because I was very slap dash in my attempts to tie it on. I've recently re-tied it and done a much better job and am hoping it still has enough life in it to finally attach and grow. My SAE's aren't helping either - they love grazing on it - even though they feed enthusiastically alongside the other fish at feeding time.

I've trimmed it in a (probably misguided) attempt to stimulate growth - but the ends have just gone brown. The growth underneath is still a rich, dark green though.

I've now got some lovely new growth - vivid green and healthy looking. Trouble is, I'm not convinced its flame moss! It doesn't look like the existing moss or the pictures I've Googled.

Can anyone tell me what it is? It looks quite nice, is growing in between the flame moss but I have no idea if it's attached or just clinging on to the moss.

 

[Mark Evans]

that looks like good old riccia to me.

 

[John Starkey]

Hi cee bee,
if I'm not mistaken it looks like riccia to me ?
regards john.

 

[CeeBee]

Thanks Saintly - just been to Google some pics of it and you're right. There must have been a strand or two of it in with the FM when I got it (although I certainly didn't notice it). Unless it came in on another plant and found its way into the moss. Strange that it's done nothing for so long and now all of a sudden taken off.

What to do then? Pull it all out or leave it?

Will it have attached to the wood? I don't suppose it would co-exist with the moss?

I'd really like to persevere with the moss though - so maybe its better to just remove it.

Damn moss - I so want it to thrive but I'm rubbish at growing it 🙁

 

[a1Matt]

What to do then? Pull it all out or leave it?

Up to you as as it will co exist no problem with the moss.

Damn moss - I so want it to thrive but I'm rubbish at growing it 🙁

I'd lay the blame fairly and squarely at the SAE's. They love eating the growing tips of moss. If you have a really large portion of a moss it can grow faster than they eat it, but they will always make it look a bit straggly IMO. (Even amano shrimp eat some mosses!)

 

[chilled84]

its lovely. its riccia without a doubt. 😀

 

[CeeBee]

Right SAE's get the blame then (and not my shoddy attempts at attaching it in the first place).

It looks like I'm fighting a war of attrition to keep the moss going - not only do I have 2 SAE's - I have a little tribe of Amano shrimp. It's like a 24x7 salad bar.

I'll leave the Riccia in if the two can coexist - it draws the eye away from the poor state of the moss.

Thanks for the thoughts and advice

 

[Dan Crawford]

Damn Riccia, it's like a weed man, get it in there and you'll never be rid of it!

Be careful, it's gonna grow fast and the likely hood is that it'll become attached to any other moss you have in the tank. It can't self attach like mosses so it tends to find a host, attach it's self and then starve the host of light as it quickly encompasses the whole thing. When it finally breaks free, it'll float to the surface and grow even quicker, rapidly starving the whole tank of light.

This is only what happens to me, I can get a bit lazy at times. It's a lovely plant but very high maintenance in terms of keeping it looking good, like riccia stones for instance.

 

[CeeBee]

That doesn't sound good - I don't want high maintenance anything. Water changes alone are enough for me (I'm still using a bucket!)

Saturday is tank maintenance day - I might try and get it out. The moss is what I'd really like to get sorted - although I think I'm on a hide into nothing with it!

 

[chriscrook4750]

took my riccia out 6 moths ago and still findig it floating about

 

[CeeBee]

took my riccia out 6 moths ago and still findig it floating about

Great 🙁

My tea strainer has now been seconded to my tank toolkit. Trying to trim the dwarf hairgrass without making a mess is almost impossible. The tea strainer is brilliant for sweeping the surface and getting rid of the trimmings though.

 

[a1Matt]

took my riccia out 6 moths ago and still findig it floating about

Great 🙁

My tea strainer has now been seconded to my tank toolkit. Trying to trim the dwarf hairgrass without making a mess is almost impossible. The tea strainer is brilliant for sweeping the surface and getting rid of the trimmings though.

It took me a long time to realise to turn the filter off when doing trimming. Makes it much easier to scoop up trimmings when they are not being blown allover the place

 

[CeeBee]

I'd lay the blame fairly and squarely at the SAE's. They love eating the growing tips of moss. If you have a really large portion of a moss it can grow faster than they eat it, but they will always make it look a bit straggly IMO. (Even amano shrimp eat some mosses!)

The SAE's are off to Maidenhead Aquatics at the weekend. I really want the moss to do well. After looking at some pictures of it from the early days of it being in my tank - I've realised just how bad it looks now.