# Tips for planting riccia and other carpet plants.



## retoid (Jan 2, 2007)

I would love some tips on how to plant a large mat of riccia in eco-complete.

The size of the mat is about 6"x8"

Thanks


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## epicfish (Sep 11, 2006)

I'd tie it all down to a piece of slate and just wiggle the slate into the substrate...it should spread soon enough...it worked for me for a short while until I realized I didn't want a huge carpet of riccia and tore it all down.

PS: A new package is going out Monday.


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## retoid (Jan 2, 2007)

epicfish, I had it tied to a piece of slate at first with sewing thread, that did not hold it very long and most of it found its way to the top of the tank again.
If I tie it better with some fishing line will it expand and stay growing along the substrate? If so, how does it keep itself down?

P.S. Thanks, I will keep you updated.


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## ikuzo (Jul 11, 2006)

stainless steel mesh. make a huge sandwich of it. if you use slates, the carpet won't look good, the border between slates will be visible.


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## epicfish (Sep 11, 2006)

Actually, I used a small piece of slate and then the carpet kind of spread over the substrate beyond the borders of the slate. Riccia grows pretty quickly!

If you go to Wal-Mart, you can get loofahs (synthetic bath sponges) for $1 or $2 each. Go home and unravel it. It becomes this huge mesh/net thing. I just put some riccia on slate or stainless steel mesh, wrap it with the netting, and tie the netting on the underside of the slate pretty tightly. It'll look ugly until the riccia grows up and covers the netting, but once it does, it looks pretty nice.

Loofah:


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## retoid (Jan 2, 2007)

Thats a pretty good idea. What type of steel mesh do you guys use? And can it be found at a convenient store?


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## weeds (Mar 28, 2004)

This is how I did mine>

http://www.dvaga.com/article_Secure_Riccia.htm

It's been in the tank for about 2 weeks and it's really doing well.


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## retoid (Jan 2, 2007)

weeds said:


> This is how I did mine>
> 
> http://www.dvaga.com/article_Secure_Riccia.htm
> 
> It's been in the tank for about 2 weeks and it's really doing well.


Awesome, great example and nice looking tank!


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## retoid (Jan 2, 2007)

Hehe my girlfriend is going to be mad when she gets home and notices I ruined her bath sponge thing 










The riccia mat has been growing for some time now floating in my other 20gal tank. I can potentially cover the entire foreground and still have riccia left over hehe. I must fine some more slate.

Thanks again.


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## CampCreekTexas (Feb 28, 2007)

retoid said:


> If so, how does it keep itself down?


It doesn't keep itself down. Riccia doesn't attach to things like java and other mosses do. And you have to keep it trimmed to allow light to get to the parts under the string/bath sponge stuff or else that part will die. Then the whole thing will let go and float to the top again.


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## fishymatty (Feb 25, 2007)

You have to realize about ricca is since it spreads and grows so fast, and you have to tie it down or use mesh to grow it on a slate it will spread off the anchor point and eventually the bottom plants will rot out and die so it will break off the anchor and float up to the surface. That stuff is not meant for long term aquascaping.


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## retoid (Jan 2, 2007)

ugh, thanks for the reality guys


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## Nbot (Apr 15, 2007)

I had an awesome patch of it, but threw it out b/c its a mess, besides how pretty it looks pearling, I hate the stuff...


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## ringram (Jan 19, 2005)

I recently made riccia sandwiches using regular black screen (for screen doors) from the hardware store. It's growing out of the holes and starting to look pretty nice, but it looks like the stuff inside is dying. uuuggh. I guess I'll take it back apart again. It looks nice if you can get it to get hung up in something like hairgrass. I have mine intertwined in some narrow leaf java fern and managed to get it to grow into a flat shelf (6" x 4" or so), but after a few days a piece of it always detaches and floats to the top.
I'm at odds with this stuff. Part of me wants to keep it b/c it looks neat (especially when pearling), but the other part of me is just annoyed by how hard it is to work with and the immense mess it can make of your tank while doing a water change and/or rearrangement of other plants.


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## CampCreekTexas (Feb 28, 2007)

retoid said:


> ugh, thanks for the reality guys


Sorry  and YW  :icon_lol:


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## drtechno (Sep 2, 2007)

Try latch-hook rug mesh in a sandwich with fishing line and anchor it down using rocks or long nylon screws poked through the sandwich with nylon nuts and washers protruding underneath as anchors.


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## HeathBar (Aug 28, 2007)

Will this method work with glosso?


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## retoid (Jan 2, 2007)

I don't see why not. I have not tried it.

Glosso was another plant that turned out to be my worst nightmare hehe.
Specially in tahiti moon sand. I planted lots of it with tweezers, even with 65W of light for 10 hours and a second 65W bulb for 3 extra hours in a well open area in my 20gal T the glosso still decided to grow straight up.


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## retoid (Jan 2, 2007)

Here is an update on some photos.


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