Mixed mosses

[whuntley]

I see pics, here, of beautiful tanks with 2 to 5 species of moss growing in them.

I cannot tell them apart, usually, so I'm as reluctant to mix them as I am to put similar killies in the same tank.

Mosses have such variable growth patterns with conditions that one looks like the other sometimes.

How do I get over this hurdle?

Wright

[timebomb]

There is a way, Wright but it isn't foolproof. Tie them down. I recognise my mosses by remembering which is which when I tie them down to driftwoods or rocks. My memory fails me sometimes though.

Another way is to distinguish them is by genus. The Taxiphyllum's and Vesicularia's look distinctly different so it should be okay to keep, say Taiwan Moss (Taxiphyllum alternans) and Singapore Moss (Vesicularia dubyana) in the same tank. You probably have Taiwan and Java which are of the same genus. So don't put them together in the same tank. I can tell the difference between these 2 if given a bunch of them but if it's just a frond or 2, it's very difficult to tell them apart.

Loh K L

[Green Baron]

Wright,
Do like what you do with your Killies. Keep them in separate tanks to maintain the line. In your display tank, don't worry about id, just put in what ever mosses that fit your scape.

Mosses are very difficult to id when they are mixed up and are not in their prime. Even Singapore and Java can be difficult to id when they are mixed up and grown in less than ideal condition.