# Fissidens zippelianus



## NAL (Feb 27, 2007)

Does anyone know anything about this stuff? I think it would look nice on my drift wood.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Live-aquarium-p...1582712QQihZ015QQcategoryZ66794QQcmdZViewItem


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## stepheus (Jun 13, 2006)

I have them in colder acidic soft water. Needs high light and CO2 until it establishes itself at least. After it roots on the wood, conditions can be lax.


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## NAL (Feb 27, 2007)

stepheus said:


> I have them in colder acidic soft water. Needs high light and CO2 until it establishes itself at least. After it roots on the wood, conditions can be lax.


Thanks


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## Gilraen Took (Apr 19, 2007)

What about the fontanus? (sorry to hijack) I was thinking about some of that for the piece of driftwood I will have in my 20. If not I am going to have moss.


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## DonaldmBoyer (Aug 18, 2005)

Gilraen--

Same conditions apply for just about all mosses. Tie the fontanus down into place on the driftwood, and keep it in cool water that has a lower pH. Basically the same conditions for CRS or cherry shrimp apply to mosses, which is probably why you see them together so often!  CO2 helps the fontanus grow, but it isn't absolutely needed. Also, a decent flow in your tank helps keep the fontanus clear of debris. If you can block out some of the light, it would be best as Fontanus is really prone to getting covered in hair algae. You can treat the algae with hydrogen peroxide doses without harming the fontanus.

It basically applies to the zippelianus as well. These mosses really seem to grow well with bright, BUT INDIRECT, light. It is a tad strange, but if you can get them to thrive, Fissidens species are the best looking of all mosses! They have great coloration, interesting leaf structure, and grow fairly slow so you don't have to always keep trimming them. I am definitley a big fan!


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## spypet (Jul 27, 2007)

Here's zipper moss I got from AquaticMagic 
off ebaY after 10 days in a dark envelope;


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## spypet (Jul 27, 2007)

kept in >3wpg, soft water, neutral pH, low phosphate & nitrate, ~76F, no moss eating animals.
Since August I expected this moss to at least double in size, not to dissolve or become petrified.

I bought this from AQMagic:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250092157933

to: *stepheus* or *DonaldmBoyer* 
since you both claim to grow this moss successfully
could you please post a recent photo of your results.

*3 Months later;*


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## Snake52 (Dec 15, 2006)

Anybody knows where to get those plastic grids for making a moss wall ? Thanks.


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## Gilraen Took (Apr 19, 2007)

Dunno anything about how to keep it from dying, but I used the cheap mesh backing from wal mart(or craft stores) I've seen it in white and black and a few other colours. Hm, I ended up not using the tank I was going to do a wall in, and have just used it as a divider for a 10 gallon 2 betta tank. *shrugs*may have to widen the holes though depending on how thick you can find it.


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## DonaldmBoyer (Aug 18, 2005)

Umm....YIKES!!! Don't know what to tell you, except it is supposed to thrive in acidic conditions and you specified that it is in neutral water. Also, your water temperature shouldn't be more than 74F which believe it or not, makes a huge difference. The warmer the water, even by a few degrees, can cause Fissidens to melt away. Do you have CO2 running? That also helps. Do you dose iron?

You can see my fissidens on my "40 gallon Cube" thread in "Aquascaping"; it is tied to all of the manzanita branches in there. Other than a few minor hair algae problems, I've had no issues growing it. Sorry, Spy! Looks like it wasn't in the best shape to begin with, though.


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## spypet (Jul 27, 2007)

your Manzanita branches look like Fissidens Fontanus, not F.zippelianus.
F.fontanus grows far more tolerate within a wider range of tank conditions.










*I grow tons of F.fontanus in the same tank I attempted to grow F.zippelianus.*


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## DonaldmBoyer (Aug 18, 2005)

Oh, it's in there....pardon my pictures, there is a nice clump of it on the extreme left about a third of the way up. Mine doesn't really grow in the same manner that they have on Aquatic Magic site. It would be awesome if it did. It grows on a bit of an angle.

Most of it is Fontanus, or Fontanus fontanus, you are right. That is most of what is on "top" of the manzanita. Zippelianus is closer to the substrate on the "trunks" of the manzanita. 

Again, I think that your order was a bit dried out by the time you received it; otherwise, it would seem that you know a bit more about F. zippelianus than I do, so you tell me why mine is doing fine and yours isn't.


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## spypet (Jul 27, 2007)

thanks for the clarification about your fissidens mixture.
I'm sure you are better at growing zipper than I'll ever be.
without compressed Co2, I'm limited in what I can grow.
as to how to grow zipper better, at this point I don't care
anymore, since I can't afford to maintain it's requirements.

_what pisses me off is how AQMagic sells the stuff like it's easy;_
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250092157933

Info: PH: 5.8 - 7.5 _- range should all be under neutral_
Temperature: 24 to 29 Celsius (75 to 84 Fahrenheit) _- way too high temp range_
kH: 2 - 15 dh _- kH should all be in the low single digits_
Lighting Requirements: Low to High (Recommend about 3 wpg) _- confusing_
Height: 0.5" _- inaccurate_
Difficulty: Easy _- ridiculous_
_no mention at all of Co2 requirements_


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## DonaldmBoyer (Aug 18, 2005)

I feel you, Spy! It isn't as easy as they want you to believe. I've been lucky; I introduced mine into a high light/high CO2 environment with water filtered through peat, and it took off. I didn't know too much about water temp., kH, etc. I knew I had soft acidic clean water which was cooler temp for the shrimp.

If you can afford a CO2 system, I would get one if possible. Keep your eyes open; sometimes people here or at Aquabid/Ebay sell them for pretty cheap. It has made all of the difference in the world for me. It is initially pricey, but cheap thereafter as all you need to buy are CO2 gas refills.

But yeah....some retailers aren't the best shippers. Not much you can do about buddy....find it somewhere in the US is probably your best bet. I've seen it sold here on APC once or twice. Your best bet may be aquabid.com.


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## Zapins (Jul 28, 2004)

Very old thread to dredge up, but is this the same moss I collected in Argentina? If not any ideas?

http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/...quatic-plant-association/78605-argentina.html


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