[qa2744]

Has anyone had luck growing sphagnum moss in their riparium / paludarium? I've started with some very healthy samples from my pond and successfully turned them into decaying mush.

I have two different tanks, both turning moss into mush.

Tank 1
BeamsWork DA FSPEC LED - 10 hour per day
Moss is elevated above the water on a ledge but is continually misted from the bubble wand

Tank 2
Twinstar 450 - 12 hours per day (but ramp up/ramp down cycle)
Moss is sitting on top of a sand cap, so it effectively has "wet feet" all the time. This is similar to how it is growing at the pond edge

Both tanks get a "squirt" of Thrive once a week. Both tanks have submersed plants, fish, shrimp that are doing well below the water line.

All I can guess so far is that the sphagnum moss needs really high lighting (ie - sunlight)? Or maybe too much water but neither are "drowning".

Any thoughts?

 

[wastewater]

Any thoughts?

Have not grown it in a riparium or paludarium, but am successful with growing it in terrariums used for growing orchids.



Lighting is bright, RH is high, and temperatures are on the 'warmish' side. I do not mist, or fertilize, the sphagnum. Several of my set-ups have a 2 inch layer of Hydroton on the bottom covered with standing water (I use distilled H2O for my orchids, and for the standing water in the hydro balls). The Sphagnum grows off this substrate. Growth always seems to be stable. When it gets out of hand (not behaving and overtaking everything) I trim it back.


A few examples below that might help you to visualize what I'm talking about.


Bottom of terrariums (Sphagnum is growing on top of Hydroton)

Growing off substrate & orchid mounts

 

[RadOtter]

Has anyone had luck growing sphagnum moss in their riparium / paludarium? I've started with some very healthy samples from my pond and successfully turned them into decaying mush.

I have two different tanks, both turning moss into mush.

Tank 1
BeamsWork DA FSPEC LED - 10 hour per day
Moss is elevated above the water on a ledge but is continually misted from the bubble wand

Tank 2
Twinstar 450 - 12 hours per day (but ramp up/ramp down cycle)
Moss is sitting on top of a sand cap, so it effectively has "wet feet" all the time. This is similar to how it is growing at the pond edge

Both tanks get a "squirt" of Thrive once a week. Both tanks have submersed plants, fish, shrimp that are doing well below the water line.

All I can guess so far is that the sphagnum moss needs really high lighting (ie - sunlight)? Or maybe too much water but neither are "drowning".

Any thoughts?

It grows like crazy in my riparian settings and in my bog tank. Sphagnum prefers quite a bit of light (80-150µmols), but it will still survive in lower light. It does not tolerate salts of any kind though. So any hcl salt based nutrients, or if the sand wasn't rinsed thoroughly enough, will turn it to mush.

Sphagnum had antibacterial properties when it's healthy, but if it's flagging it will be decimated my any cyanobacteria. You could try growing it in a Tupperware container first until it really takes off, than transplant part of it into your tanks.