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Thread: Feasible idea? Growing moss in small goldfish bowl

  1. #1
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    Feasible idea? Growing moss in small goldfish bowl

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    Hi,

    thinking of starting a small goldfish bowl with a small driftwood with moss tied on it.

    No supplemental lights, just ambient (not direct) lighting from the sun.

    No filters.

    Intend to put in small # of shrimps, maybe 3-5.

    Maybe just small water changes every week.

    2 questions:
    1. Will the moss grow in this condition?
    2. Will the shrimps survive?

    Will appreciate any comments especially from people who've tried this idea before.
    Cheers
    Boon Yong

  2. #2
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    Re: Feasible idea? Growing moss in small goldfish bowl

    No supplemental lights, just ambient (not direct) lighting from the sun.
    Ditto. Low light requiring plants like moss and ferns don't need that much light.

    No filters.
    Ditto. Plants acts as filters.

    Intend to put in small # of shrimps, maybe 3-5.
    Depending on size of bowl. 2~4 Cherry shrimps should be fine. I use Cherry as they are fern and moss friendly. Can't say that for yamatos!

    Maybe just small water changes every week.
    Add a few snails and maybe 2 black molly frys and you don't even have to bother with water changes!

    2 questions:
    1. Will the moss grow in this condition?

    YES

    2. Will the shrimps survive?
    YES

    oh... one more thing... you can actually cover or seal the mouth of the bowl if you wish. That will minimize water evaporation and keep the CO2 in, which is used by the plants, which in turn releases O2.

    If sealed, avoid over-stocking on fish and you'll minimize O2 shortage for them.

    I've 3 tiny tiny plastic tanks running like this... sounds good doesn't it? :wink:
    I'm back & keeping 'em fingers wet,
    Ronnie Lee

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    Boon Yong, besides the other things that Ronnie mentioned, I think the most important factor is to keep your bowl somewhere cool. If you keep in indoors all the time, chances are the water will become too warm for the moss. The mosses in my raising trays stay alive for months on end although they are kept in dark conditions but under the bench (in the balcony) where I keep them, it is very cool.

    Loh K L

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    first, if you have standing water, make sure to have some fish for mosquito control, you don't want the MOE (or worst, angry neighbours) knocking on your doors.

    second, if you want to look at the inhabitants, in any other angle other than from the top, consider a 6-inch or 8-inch cube instead of a bowl.
    why I don't do garden hybrids and aquarium strains: natural species is a history of Nature, while hybrids are just the whims of Man.
    hexazona · crumenatum · Galleria Botanica

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    Thanks for the enthusiatic replies! So great men do think alike, ha ha! And great women of course...(my wife just reminded me about this)

    Maybe just small water changes every week.
    Add a few snails and maybe 2 black molly frys and you don't even have to bother with water changes!
    With regard to this point though, I don't quite understand it. Why would adding snails and molly fries void the need for water changes? Wouldn't adding more bioload create a greater need for more biological filtration, which is already lacking in this concept except for the moss (i.e., no filters)?
    Cheers
    Boon Yong

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    Since last November, I have been keeping a little 20x10x10 cm tank in my living room (no air-con) with 1 cm of plain gravel plus java fern (including a Windelov from KL), Xmas moss, Java moss, Marsilea, Anubias nana, Najas indica and Monosolenium tenerum (aka Pellia). Livestock = 9 Boraras maculatus, one guppy, three coolie loaches and 3 generations of shrimp (Malayan, Bee, Taiwan, Cherry - unknown number but numerous). No filter, CO2, air pump..... just a 9W PL light (11 hours daily) and fortnightly 30% water changes with a few drops of Dr Mallick's LushGrow Aqua. It's my least demanding tank setup ever.

    A old photo of it can be seen here, along with my other setups.

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    HI All & boon yang,

    How about something like this? It a betta tank.
    http://www30.brinkster.com/owts/pic/minishrimptank.jpg

    this type of setup are cheaper and there's no wory of failure as the cost is not high. So Anyone like to try out this type of simple tank, just go ahead and give it a try.

    If you intend to feed your fishes daily, remember not to over feed, i have encounter seeing alot of white worms swimming around and have to stop feeding and let the magic of nature take the course and within afew days they disappear. Not sure if my shrimp armies have decide to come out and hunt them for food i not sure.

    Cheers.
    Teck Song
    Best Regards, TS
    PlantLog Garden Cryptocoryne, Bucephalandra .....

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    Depending the size of your goldfish bowl, it could be ideal for growing emmersed aquarium plants (by covering the top with a plastic sheet or film, moisture is retained). Plain gravel mixed with a wee bit of fertiliser (no soil, as it can get anaerobic), with water enough to keep the roots wet, and plants like crypts should do well.

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    Gold fishes are big eaters. If you have limited space (a small bowl), naturally, you need to change the water more frequently. Anyhow, in such setup, feeding has to be restrainted.

    As for water conditioning to keep the plants going, you may need to first test the water condition for the first 2~3 weeks (do not add any fert during this time). Check for NO3 & PO4. To balance and keep these 2 nutrients in check, adding K2SO4 (such that K is added at 5~10 ppm per week) and KH2PO4 (such that PO4 is added at 0.5 ppm per week) should be enough. You probably need nothing more than these 2 nutrients. Weekly water change would be necessary if you want it to stay in optimum form.

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    Freddy, I think they're just planning to use a goldfish bowl without the goldfish :wink:
    why I don't do garden hybrids and aquarium strains: natural species is a history of Nature, while hybrids are just the whims of Man.
    hexazona · crumenatum · Galleria Botanica

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    Quote Originally Posted by cheeboonyong
    Maybe just small water changes every week.
    Add a few snails and maybe 2 black molly frys and you don't even have to bother with water changes!
    With regard to this point though, I don't quite understand it. Why would adding snails and molly fries void the need for water changes? Wouldn't adding more bioload create a greater need for more biological filtration, which is already lacking in this concept except for the moss (i.e., no filters)?
    Boon Yong, I'm not acadamically inclined and have no intention of turning my fun into rocket science but... the 3 mini tanks were actually experiments to get rid of algae-infested small driftwoods with moss already growing on them.

    Without feeding the tanks' inhabitants, the shrimps feast on algae, the snails keep the wall and surface clean of algae and scum. The small molly fry takes care of whatever little cyclops that feast on the bacteria and droppings from the snails and shrimps. The moss absorbs the gunk, grows and becomes food for the shrimps and.... (well... think of it as a mini eco-system and you'll get the idea).

    My bioload is small... 2 mollies, 3 shrimps and 2 snails... and they're still not dead yet! :wink:

    I wish I could be more technically specific, but I won't... it takes the fun out of it!... instead, I'll upload some pics of these tanks when I can, and you be the judge of it. FYI, I top up for water evaporation but haven't changed it in weeks. Felix has seen them and like others, doesn't believe what he see!

    Like my friend always say... "you never know until you try"
    I'm back & keeping 'em fingers wet,
    Ronnie Lee

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    If you put real goldfishes in the bowl maybe they eat them all both moss and shrimp.
    Keep trying!!

    K. Sitthiprasert

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    just to give an update.

    I now have a small goldfish bowl with only Java moss and Pellia. Occupants are 5 cherry shrimps and 1 yamato.

    water changes every 1-2 weeks and feeding of tetrabit pellets every 2 days. No filters, no lights.

    Has been going on like this for close to 1 month now with no problems of death nor algae. Only "setback" is that the cherry shrimps have not bred yet! (read that they are very profilic in breeding...)
    Cheers
    Boon Yong

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by cheeboonyong
    Only "setback" is that the cherry shrimps have not bred yet! (read that they are very profilic in breeding...)
    Neither has mine (also part of the original reason why I did these little tanks!)

    But on the bright side, Boon Yong, these are really no-maintenance "tanklets" and can be quite fun to observe.
    I'm back & keeping 'em fingers wet,
    Ronnie Lee

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    actually still need to do some "minor" maintenance. The shrimps are not prolific in breeding, but very prolific in passing motion, i.e., converting food into waste

    so I still need to suck out the shit at the bottom using a baster every now and then.
    Cheers
    Boon Yong

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    It is very possible to grow mosses in a bowl. Same as with what the others have said.

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