I like planted tanks, but even after decades of keeping them I am still not a "plant" guy. I buy the occasional plant and try it out; if it dies, it dies. If it turns out to be one of those tough species that happens to like the conditions in my tank, it usually grows like gangbusters and I wind up using it in every tank, as well as giving or throwing away handfuls.
One of the plants that does this for me is Java Moss. It thrives on neglect; I like that!
Last year I was experimenting with various types of aquarium plants in my outdoor pond, and while introducing them I must have inadvertently added a few sprigs of Java Moss. I never saw it last year, and at the end of the summer season, before my pond began to freeze solid as it does each winter, I removed whatever plants and fish I could and brought them back into the house. A few days ago, the ice finally melted off the pond surface and I wandered out to check things. To my astonishment, I saw a large round mass of Java Moss, maybe soccer-ball-sized, jammed up against the pondwall. Further inspection revealed several more similar masses at various points, and each was either solidly encased in ice or at least partially frozen into the melting mini-glaciers in the pond. The moss looks bright green and completely healthy. I considered taking some inside but since the temperature differential is still something like 40F degrees I chose to leave it.
Has anyone ever experienced this with Java Moss, or other plants? For all I know it will turn brown and die as soon as it warms up, but at the moment it still looks terrific. Is this stuff going to live?
One of the plants that does this for me is Java Moss. It thrives on neglect; I like that!
Last year I was experimenting with various types of aquarium plants in my outdoor pond, and while introducing them I must have inadvertently added a few sprigs of Java Moss. I never saw it last year, and at the end of the summer season, before my pond began to freeze solid as it does each winter, I removed whatever plants and fish I could and brought them back into the house. A few days ago, the ice finally melted off the pond surface and I wandered out to check things. To my astonishment, I saw a large round mass of Java Moss, maybe soccer-ball-sized, jammed up against the pondwall. Further inspection revealed several more similar masses at various points, and each was either solidly encased in ice or at least partially frozen into the melting mini-glaciers in the pond. The moss looks bright green and completely healthy. I considered taking some inside but since the temperature differential is still something like 40F degrees I chose to leave it.
Has anyone ever experienced this with Java Moss, or other plants? For all I know it will turn brown and die as soon as it warms up, but at the moment it still looks terrific. Is this stuff going to live?