MrSanders

anyone growing mosses emersed? I am getting a nice little collection of different species, and I would like to keep them all going for future use..... however I just dont currently have room in my scapes to house many different moss species, and I would also like to have "clean" containers where different species are going to mix togeather....

Anyway anyone growing moss emersed? whats the best way to ensure they get the nutrients they need? I am going to use small plastic food type containers that are clear with clear lids.... a few very small holes in the lid for air exchange... and was planning on a very thin layer of top soil covered by a thin cap of sand.... water it down slightlyand lay the moss on top of that.... adding water to keep just the very top of the sand covered.....

any better ways of going about it?

slickwillislim

I am growing erect moss in my emersed set up. It isnt growing that fast but it is growing. THe pics below are not very accurate. Right now my water level is about two thirds up the gravel. I am not sure how the moss gets nutrients I just figured it grew slow enough that the little it could get was enough. The rooted plants exploded in that tank. The moss has probably grown about 5x as much as whats there. Pretty algae free too since it pokes up off the gravel.

http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/f...sed-start.html

onemyndseye

This brings me to a question:

How well do mosses readapt to submerged life? Is the emersed form growth alot different from submerged growth?

Thanks,
-Justin
One Mynds Eye

DaFishMan

I'm also considering taking the plunge to try emmersed moss as I also have some samples kicking around. I'm very curious to see how you do.
Good Luck ! And post us on your progress.

MrSanders

Thanks for all the replies.... My basic Idea is to keep each different species in its one small tubberware type container... with just enough water to cover the top of the sand.... I figure there will be a slow leach of nutrients from the "substrate" which should be enough to get the moss by.

I am not trying this out to get lots of moss fast or anything like that. Just simply want a way to hang on to each different species I obtain while they arnt "in use" and keep the algae free, along with other moss sp. free also....

It will be intresting to see how it comes Out... and like Justin brought up, to see how well the moss adapts back to submerged life again.... I'll try to post some pics of the set up as they come alone..... Just dont have the time to get around to actually doing it right now.... maybe in the next few days

GreenMachine

I grow some emersed moss on stones pebbles, it is quite easy, you can do this very well with a tupperware container with a lid. Do a 50/50 tapwater/carbonate water mix, because moss prefer acidic environment. Top the water enough to cover to the top of the highest fronds and in a couple of weeks emersed fronds will send out of the water. Make sure it is cover to keep the humidity up. Thats it...emersed moss. Grows no faster than submersed but less of a hassle.

Cavan Allen

There's not really any trick to growing moss emersed. I've found, though, that it doesn't appreciate concentrated nutrient solution. A minimum of fertilization is all it takes.

epicfish

Hm. I found some moss in a garden and threw it in some water to see if it'd grow submersed. Kinda opposite of this thread, but I plan to see if it grows submersed first. If it does, I'll try to bring it back up emersed and see how it goes. =)

MrSanders

I have done that a few times also epicfish.... Some of the moss grew well under water, some did not grow at all.... In the end I didnt keep any because they were ugly lol just long thin strands that never branched much.

Back on topic... thanks Cavan... I figured that I wouldnt need much as far as nutrients go.... but I wanted to make sure there were some there for the taking. I suppose another way to go about it would to be no substrate of any kind and just about a half inch of water from a well balanced planted tank.... with misting there after to keep it moist as water evaporated.

Oh well I already set up my little tubs with a thin substrate.... i think it should work nicely though they arnt getting much light because they are jammed behind my larger rubbermaid bins that hold more light hungry emersed plants. I think they will still do just fine though.... I will update when some new growth starts to show up.

DaFishMan

"Just simply want a way to hang on to each different species I obtain while they arnt "in use"

This is totally understandable. I want to see all my moss types what they look like as they grow out (in submersed form) to compare, as well as get more types. One problem.. 2 tanks and no room for more. Also not wanting the mosses to mix so can only grow out one type at a time. I can see where emmerse would be nice to keep moss samples separately in pots in an unused small tank.

Looking forward to the new pics