# Javas stunted growth !



## Dr.Ponce (Nov 28, 2007)

Hi everyone,

I've been searching over the internet for possible causes for my java moss' and fern's stunted growth issue. But i'm not satisfied with what i found. It seems that everyone on the net considers these two java plants to grow like weeds, with no special care or light given. Well, it turns out that this is not my story. I have only been able to grow them in a little .5 gallon plastic tank in my room. And they aren't growing "that" much. 


Things that seem relevant so far are:
1. Since i live in a tropical area, my tanks are rather warm.
2. In other tanks i have ghost shrimp (could they be eating this plants?)

So lets see if together we can solve this mystery...


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## customdrumfinishes (Apr 1, 2008)

i have ghost shrimp in a planted tank and they dont eat anything, i think java fern max size only gets about 8 inches tall, with ph of 6.5-7.5 being ideal ph and lighting being anything really. maybe the water temp in your tank is to high, i have had plants die at 82 degree water temp but be great at 76. i do put flourish excel on my plants and do weekly 10% water changes but thats it.


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## customdrumfinishes (Apr 1, 2008)

customdrumfinishes said:


> i have ghost shrimp in a planted tank and they dont eat anything, i think java fern max size only gets about 8 inches tall, with ph of 6.5-7.5 being ideal ph and lighting being anything really. maybe the water temp in your tank is to high, i have had plants die at 82 degree water temp but be great at 76. i do put flourish excel on my plants and do weekly 10% water changes but thats it.


i am wrong i have seen java fern get over 8" friend has some 13" tall thats about 2 years old, he doses flourish,iron,and C02 tis every other day. maybe low light or checmical defeciency.


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## Dr.Ponce (Nov 28, 2007)

thanks for your reply,

my ferns top at 2 inches and maybe 4 leaves. i guess you must be right about ghost shrimp. i'm not sure if they really are ghosts, this ones i have are locally caught and the lady who sells them calls them "camaroncitos de cristal" (crystal shrimps) wich i know they aren't. i believe they get quite big, i have one right now that's reaching 4" of lengh. 

Currently i just added DIY CO2 to my nano. and found a way to reduce water agitation.


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## customdrumfinishes (Apr 1, 2008)

Dr.Ponce said:


> thanks for your reply,
> 
> my ferns top at 2 inches and maybe 4 leaves. i guess you must be right about ghost shrimp. i'm not sure if they really are ghosts, this ones i have are locally caught and the lady who sells them calls them "camaroncitos de cristal" (crystal shrimps) wich i know they aren't. i believe they get quite big, i have one right now that's reaching 4" of lengh.
> 
> Currently i just added DIY CO2 to my nano. and found a way to reduce water agitation.


 dr ponce.....your crystals might be freshwater prawn, they an get up to 6" and they eat fish, i saw a pic of one eating a tiger barb larger than it was. ghost shrimp dont get over 2".

the javas arent real fast growers like a amazon sword etc, to get huge they need high light and co2 helps them boom quickly


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## Dr.Ponce (Nov 28, 2007)

I guess you should be right about the shrimp (prawns). i have them because long time ago when this shrimp were very little, i used to feed them to a stingray. as the ray passed away, many shrimp were left in their tank. but now i only keep them as scavangers.

it is a shame that here in panamá it is very rare to be able to get some amanos. and because amanos don't breed well in home aquaria, they never form a stable colony. if i could get some RCS i would make sure they got their own tank...


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## Dr.Ponce (Nov 28, 2007)

oH, i forgot to tell you i have seen them catching a few fish and killing a few apple snails... so i guess i will no longer call them "shrimp" or "camaroncitos" (little shrimp)....


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## Dr.Ponce (Nov 28, 2007)

thanks for everything, i will definetly take your advice and wait for results...


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## FishandTurtleJunkie (Apr 14, 2007)

customdrumfinishes said:


> dr ponce.....your crystals might be freshwater prawn, they an get up to 6" and they eat fish, i saw a pic of one eating a tiger barb larger than it was. ghost shrimp dont get over 2".
> 
> the javas arent real fast growers like a amazon sword etc, to get huge they need high light and co2 helps them boom quickly


Good water movement helps growth as well as the CO2 and light.


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## starsunmoon (Apr 1, 2008)

Dr.Ponce said:


> oH, i forgot to tell you i have seen them catching a few fish and killing a few apple snails... so i guess i will no longer call them "shrimp" or "camaroncitos" (little shrimp)....


yes these are NOT shrimp !! I would getthem away from your plants too !! go trade them in for anything else you may need, lol, you could sell them on here, or aquabid !! good luck!! for your moss, I would say do more water changes to keep the water cooler, like everyday do a 10%, that shoudl help growth. just my 2 cents ..


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## Dr.Ponce (Nov 28, 2007)

starsunmoon, i will try increasing water change rate. seems like a nice idea...


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