# Shipping hornwort



## omega

Does anyone know how to ship this plant? It keeps melting before reaching the other person. I ship through Priority Mail and it's the red hornwort variety if that makes a difference.


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## Gomer

THere is a red hornwart variety? I have normal green hornwart, but if I keep my tank on the lean side, I can get it to turn a redish bronze...just a nutrient thing.

As for melting, the only thing that will melt the plant IME is excess heat or shipping time. It shouldn't be too hot now. When you ship, do you ship on a monday or tuesday? This way the 3 days hipping will not be extended with an overtheweekend stay at the postoffice.


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## JanS

I've always had good luck shipping it just wrapped in moist (not dripping wet) paper towel in a ziplock bag, with the exception of one not so nice recipient who lived in a very hot climate, and said they were sent a nasty wad of something [smilie=p: . That one time lead me to believe that it was overheated on her end, since that was the one and only time it ever happened out of several shipments (and I did refund the $4. or so + shipping (I'm broke now... ;-) ), just for the benefit of the doubt). 

So, as Gomer says, excess heat would be a big factor, as well as not being there to get your package out of the elements ASAP....


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## omega

Yeah, it has been melting for me in only 2 days of shipping. The first time, the person I traded with thought I sent him blue green algae. LOL. The same thing happened the second time. It turns to mush. I thought it was because of the cold. The third time I shipped to Lousiana and the stupid thing turned to mush again in only 2 days.  I pack it in moist kitchen paper towel and stuck it in a plastic bag you get from the fish store. I don't know what I am doing wrong. :???:

The red hornwort is this thing here. When I got it, it was red. Now, it's mostly green. Weird.

http://toninastyle.com/ceratophyllum_sp_from_peru.htm
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=723&c=6


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## Gomer

if you nutrient deprive normal hornwart, it will turn redish. I can get mine to look like the picture..I actually use hornwort as a nutrient indicator bacause of that LOL


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## omega

I thought that these are different plants. Here is the orginal thread started by biker: http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/showthread.php?t=2404

And here are some pictures he posted.


















Regular hornwort get that red? When I first got the plant, it was a very deep red color. So it's just regular old hornwort you can get at any store?


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## Gomer

It is hard to say since Biker's picture is drastically "pink" saturated. but there is a chance that there are two different ones. be nice if there are


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## Cavan Allen

That is not the 'regular' hornwort. It looks like it's probably a variety of _Ceratophyllum submersum_ and not the common _Ceratophyllum demersum_ we've all kept. You can tell by the forking of the leaves. Submersum has 3-4 forks, while demersum has two.


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