# Mystery Moss: sold as xmas moss, but grows in sad fingery filaments flung skyward



## RNHime (Mar 4, 2015)

It came from eBay...

More pictures in this album!​
Hello. I'm new here. I have come seeking help, and while I want to provide as much detail as I can I tend to get wordy, so I'll try to make main points that I need help with stand out like this:

- What would you ID this moss as?
- What would you suggest I use on my moss tree instead?

Last fall I set up an aquarium: a lowtech planted nano. I bought a resin tree from Up Aqua to create a moss tree with, because I love the way they look but didn't want to deal with actual driftwood. I figured it should have a sort of pine tree foliage and bought what was sold to me as "christmas/xmas moss" from a seller on eBay. I was trying to get as much as I could to get the tree off to a good start for the least amount of money. (The resin tree itself had already cost $20.)

The moss arrived and it was A LOT of moss. Yippee! Except it was a mess. Seemed to be pretty scraggly, though there were definite triangular fronds here and there throughout the bunch, and it looked like portions were full of BBA. Yikes. I picked though it, got rid of quite a bit of it in fear of BBA, and attached the best/biggest/greenest fronds to the tree with the netting it includes.

*The tank:*
Marineland 6gal Eclipse, running the filter and light it came with in the hood (nice daylight, nothing fancy but it is on a timer)
*Substrate:*
Caribsea Super Naturals "Kon Tiki" over plain old garden dirt. _Because of using dirt I skipped on ferts._ Small pieces of cholla wood.
*Tankmates:*
Dwarf hairgrass, anubias nana, marimo. Snails. Had a stint with a betta in there at the beginning, he recently died 
*Temp:*
Kept at 80F with the betta alive. Has been room temperature since then.
*Water parameters:* (I use an API liquid test kit)
Never had any spikes in ammonia, nitrites or nitrates while running this tank. It has always read very low, even when I was letting it cycle with snails and the fresh dirt. PH is steady at 6.8-7.0

So... Soon it had new growth poking through the mesh, and as the tank settled in and the dwarf hair grass took root in the substrate below, this moss slowly kept growing out. I'd let it get about 2 inches long and I'd trim it down to around 1 inch to try to encourage more dense growth. That never really happened. In fact, the stuff I trimmed early on seemed to stop growing, and new "fingers" shot up, instead. You can see the short, browned clipped stuff in some of my other photos.

When our betta died I was pretty sad about about my tank and "let it go". The growth in my pictures is about 2 months worth of going unclipped. Those strands are around 3 inches long.

Needless to say, this is disappointing. A waste of my time and money in my moss tree project. I have a hard time blaming this odd growth on my low-tech tank setup. The dwarf hairgrass, anubias, and marimo plants that were all put in at the same time have thrived, and the moss tree actually gets the best light.

My suspicions are that I was sold a moss mixed with java moss, and in my weeding-out I ended up keeping mostly java moss. Maybe it it was never xmas moss at all. Or this is a mutant moss.

Because why on earth is it growing straight up in the air? Why is there no branching? Why is it so scraggly? *What is this stuff?*

*Currently the moss tree is sitting in a bare tank after having gone through an alum dip for snails.* My plan at this point is to remove it from the tree and try again. I've had java moss in the past, which is what it looks like to me. I'll keep this for a future QT but it's so not right for a tree... I want a dense, downward-growing moss to complete this tree ornament.

I'm thinking Taiwan, peacock or _maybe_ even weeping moss from a reputable seller is the way to go... again. Or at least get something from someone who knows what they are doing. :???:

- Any ideas on which is the better choice for this sort of resin tree thing? Better yet, anyone have a source for healthy moss that doesn't cost too much?

I really appreciate the help, thanks!


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## StrungOut (Nov 8, 2004)

By the ball of the tips I would suggest erect moss, however the true species has kept evading me over and over and over again...I just don't know. The tips suggest this to me but the structure is just not piney enough to accurately id it to be so...If this makes any sense....Might you send me over 5 leaves (fronds)?


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## StrungOut (Nov 8, 2004)

If you would send to me, I only want the fronds like in the picture, see the curve at the tip? Also I can send you something way more valuable...


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## acitydweller (Feb 14, 2012)

Do not be discouraged as the experience is earned. I have a feeling you would have been happier with either Christmas, taiwan or peacock moss. They all grow relatively quick and look fantastic when mounted in a stationary position. They would provide the density that this erect/stringy moss cannot offer. I have found regular java moss to be beautiful when allowed to grow in full. Mosses are easily mis identified since their form can vary widely by their environment. The only moss that i keep regularly is peacock.


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## RNHime (Mar 4, 2015)

StrungOut said:


> If you would send to me, I only want the fronds like in the picture, see the curve at the tip? Also I can send you something way more valuable...


Thanks for your response! I was noticing those little curves at the tip, and wondering about them! I don't remember my java moss ever doing anything like that before. I'd be happy to send you some clippings, and am definitely up for trades. Where are you located at?

These were quick shots taken before I removed the plant from my tank. I could try to get a macro shot of the fronds out of the water, but I totally understand wanting to have some for yourself to figure out what it really is. =)


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## RNHime (Mar 4, 2015)

acitydweller said:


> Do not be discouraged as the experience is earned. I have a feeling you would have been happier with either Christmas, taiwan or peacock moss. They all grow relatively quick and look fantastic when mounted in a stationary position. They would provide the density that this erect/stringy moss cannot offer. I have found regular java moss to be beautiful when allowed to grow in full. Mosses are easily mis identified since their form can vary widely by their environment. The only moss that i keep regularly is peacock.


Yep, this moss is neat but so not right for a tree! If it was growing more densely it would make an awesome carpet plant, but alas...

From what I've read Christmas, Taiwan & peacock moss are all good choices for trees. May I ask why you prefer the peacock moss? =) It seems to me that peacock moss has a slightly smaller "scale" to its fronds compared to the other two. Is that right? Thanks!


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## StrungOut (Nov 8, 2004)

You got pm... thanks


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## miremonster (Mar 26, 2006)

If _Vesicularia montagnei_ is meant with Xmas: that's definitely no Vesicularia. Looks to me like any Taxiphyllum. I've noticed that several mosses, also Taxiphyllums, are labeled Christmas moss in the trade...


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## RNHime (Mar 4, 2015)

miremonster said:


> If _Vesicularia montagnei_ is meant with Xmas: that's definitely no Vesicularia. Looks to me like any Taxiphyllum. I've noticed that several mosses, also Taxiphyllums, are labeled Christmas moss in the trade...


Yes, I realize that Xmas moss is a very unofficial name. Perhaps I should have made a note that because I'm new to planted aquariums, I'm still having trouble remembering all the plants actual names...

I knew there were a few variations of xmas moss, or at least things that sold as it, but I didn't think _any_ of them grew straight up in the air, so I thought I was safe. Oh well!


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## miremonster (Mar 26, 2006)

The popular name "Christmas moss" became in a way official when Prof. B.C. Tan, Singapore, IDed a so-labeled moss as Vesicularia montagnei ca. 10 years ago. Since then the name V. montagnei sticks on "Christmas moss", also ones that don't belong to to the species V. montagnei. I would not be surprised if already then before Tan's ID several different mosses were traded as Xmas...


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## RNHime (Mar 4, 2015)

Thanks for the info, miremonster!










I took some macro photos of the moss this morning, showing some of it's few branching spots and the little hooked ends the plant has. The rest of the photos have all been added to the album linked to at the top of my first post.​


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## StrungOut (Nov 8, 2004)

miremonster said:


> If _Vesicularia montagnei_ is meant with Xmas: that's definitely no Vesicularia. Looks to me like any Taxiphyllum. I've noticed that several mosses, also Taxiphyllums, are labeled Christmas moss in the trade...


Thanks for this, I doubt it too, I saw the branches off of it...good info


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## miremonster (Mar 26, 2006)

Hi RNHime and StrungOut,

there's apparently a moss labeled Erect, Vesicularia reticulata, in the trade that grows upward like true V. reticulata but is IMO likely a Taxiphyllum species. I can only speculate that RNHime's false Christmas is identical to that moss.

The IMO false Erect moss, likely a Taxiphyllum, but I admit that it is denser branched tham RNHime's false Christmas and doesn't show those hooked tips: http://www.aquaforum.ua/showpost.php?p=1182123&postcount=1

True Vesicularia reticulata: http://www.aquamoss.net/Erect-Moss/Erect-Moss.htm


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## RNHime (Mar 4, 2015)

miremonster said:


> Hi RNHime and StrungOut,
> 
> there's apparently a moss labeled Erect, Vesicularia reticulata, in the trade that grows upward like true V. reticulata but is IMO likely a Taxiphyllum species. I can only speculate that RNHime's false Christmas is identical to that moss.
> 
> ...


Hmm, I see some hooked tips in the aquaforum photos. Hard to be sure, many of the branch tips are out of focus.

Thanks for the links! It will be interesting to see what this stuff grows into now that I'm not trimming it down to 3/4" high all the time. =D


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## StrungOut (Nov 8, 2004)

miremonster said:


> Hi RNHime and StrungOut,
> 
> there's apparently a moss labeled Erect, Vesicularia reticulata, in the trade that grows upward like true V. reticulata but is IMO likely a Taxiphyllum species. I can only speculate that RNHime's false Christmas is identical to that moss.
> 
> ...


Yeah your link, looks false as your observation. I've had spiky moss that grew erect just not the real deal. I've spread a lot through out the US, I can't believe I cannot find it. I'll never find it again...


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## BruceF (Aug 5, 2011)

I have what I assume is just plain java moss and all the tips are curled up a bit and appear whitish.


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## houseofcards (Feb 16, 2005)

Are any of your pictures from the day you received the moss or are those all after you have tried growing it for a while?


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## RNHime (Mar 4, 2015)

houseofcards said:


> Are any of your pictures from the day you received the moss or are those all after you have tried growing it for a while?


Stupidly I did not think to take pictures of the plant when I got it. =( It was a tangled mess, so I was mainly focused on finding the usable parts and getting them free of algae. =/ But now I know to keep a better eye on plants from the start, and I have a place to share their progress!

Like I said it _did_ have the triangular-branching fronds, though they weren't as full as the pictures of xmas moss I've seen. More here-and-there.


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## RNHime (Mar 4, 2015)

BruceF said:


> I have what I assume is just plain java moss and all the tips are curled up a bit and appear whitish.


I've kept java moss in the past, and it grew in any direction it pleased, not straight into the air like this does. The bent tips on this moss are distinctly brighter green. Kind of like they have little lights on the end, actually! Fiber optic moss? lol


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## houseofcards (Feb 16, 2005)

The bulb that comes with most of these setups (I think the Eclipse 6 has like a 6 watt bulb) really isn't suitable for live plants. How is the dwarf hairgrass doing?


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## RNHime (Mar 4, 2015)

houseofcards said:


> The bulb that comes with most of these setups (I think the Eclipse 6 has like a 6 watt bulb) really isn't suitable for live plants. How is the dwarf hairgrass doing?


The hairgrass has done great! Not huge, explosive growth but it has spread and needed to be trimmed. I actually just dismantled this tank yesterday, as it is moving on to a family member. Get this, I found a whole runner of healthy, happy hairgrass in _a cave!_ What on earth? =P I was honestly expecting the grass to be the plant that didn't make it, out of all of them. I'm really impressed with how well it did.

The Eclipse 6 bowfront uses an 8-watt bulb. So not great for plants, and that's why my other plant choices were easy, low-light types. I just couldn't resist the dwarf hairgrass. =)


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