# best way to attach mini christmas moss to stone



## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

My attempt to propagate hc in the pockets of my okho stone haven't gone very well. I think they are just not really deep enough to accommodate good rooting.

I've decided to add some mini christmas moss instead. :smile:














Since my tank is already up and running, what would be the best way to try to get the moss to attach? I've thought about growing the moss onto SS mesh and then cutting pieces to fit inside the holes, or perhaps I need to remove the stone and glue pieces of moss to it. If I go the glue route, how long does the stone have to stay out of the tank before it can go back in? 

Is there another easier way to do this?


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## BBradbury (Nov 8, 2010)

*Attaching Mosses*

Hello blue...

It's difficult at best to attach moss to something smooth. There's nothing for the moss to grow into or hold on to. You could try attaching your moss to a piece of lava rock. At least there are holes and rough surfaces for the moss to grow into. You can use thin strands of black sewing thread to attach the moss. Simply put the two together and wrap the thread around them.

Pieces of driftwood work best. There are many places in the wood where the moss can attach. Again, sewing thread works well. The thread will eventually dissolve in the water. But by then, the moss will be firmly established.

B


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

Thanks Bbradbury for the reply. The okho stone is actually pretty porous, as stone goes. How do you use thread to secure the moss inside the pockets? It doesn't seem possible...?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Super Glue Gel can be your friend when attaching moss. 

There are quite a few folks on the forum who use it and there are several threads discussing ways to use it. May want to do a quick search here on the site to see if it could work for your purposes.


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

somewhatshocked said:


> Super Glue Gel can be your friend when attaching moss.


I was kinda leaning towards this method. How long would I need to keep the stone out of the tank before it can go back in?


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Maybe a few minutes. Just depends upon how thick the layer of glue is. Typically dries quickly.

It'll cure under water. Lots of reefers use it to attach coral to rock.


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

Ok, mini christmas moss is on it's way (thanks, dayumdanny) and plan to use gel super glue to adhere it to the inside of the crevices.

Thanks for the info!


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## Vermino (Jun 14, 2012)

this + DSM on the okho.


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

I've used the buttermilk mix in my outside gardens, but does it attach well and stay underwater? What's DSM?


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## Vermino (Jun 14, 2012)

dry start method. you'll have to take the rock out and paint it like you did in your outside garden.


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

Vermino said:


> dry start method. you'll have to take the rock out and paint it like you did in your outside garden.


I'll have to save that to try with the next tank. I'm doing this post-fill. :smile:


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

Going back to the HC. You could try to chisel out the holes a little deeper to accomodate the HC.


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

houseofcards said:


> Going back to the HC. You could try to chisel out the holes a little deeper to accomodate the HC.


That's an idea! The rock breaks away pretty easily so it wouldn't take much, in fact, I'd be more worried about hitting it too hard and causing a chunk to fall off.

I think the moss will had a nice touch to the tank too and bring an odd number of plants to the aquascape. For some reason, I just think having an odd vs. even number of plants is more in balance. :smile:


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

bluestems said:


> That's an idea! The rock breaks away pretty easily so it wouldn't take much, in fact, I'd be more worried about hitting it too hard and causing a chunk to fall off.
> 
> I think the moss will had a nice touch to the tank too and bring an odd number of plants to the aquascape. For some reason, I just think having an odd vs. even number of plants is more in balance. :smile:


You might even be able to use sandpaper if it's porous enough, but if you do this just be careful, don't want to be responsible for a crack. As far as the number of plants for balance. I never really thought about that in terms of odd number for plant species, but that's a personal thing. I have seen alot of really nice scapes with just for example hairgrass and moss or hairgrass and hc. You tank reminds me a bit of tank I setup a few years ago where I grew hairgrass on top of the main stone.


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## Vermino (Jun 14, 2012)

where did you get your Okho stones from Btw? kind-of getting bored of sieryu stones


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

houseofcards said:


> You might even be able to use sandpaper if it's porous enough, but if you do this just be careful, don't want to be responsible for a crack. As far as the number of plants for balance. I never really thought about that in terms of odd number for plant species, but that's a personal thing. I have seen alot of really nice scapes with just for example hairgrass and moss or hairgrass and hc. You tank reminds me a bit of tank I setup a few years ago where I grew hairgrass on top of the main stone.


That's true. :smile: I also like the idea of the moss giving the stone it's own identity, with the hc staying on the ground plane, and the clover mixing with the dhg on the next level. There's cut up plant baskets embedded in the soil to act as a root barrier, however that bit of grass in front of the stone came from the upper grass shooting a root under the stone and popping up in front. I've since pulled it out.

To be honest, I'll be happy when/if I can bring it all to a healthy state. Right now, the hc is really struggling and I'm not sure what to do to fix it. :confused1:


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

Sounds good. How long has the HC been in there? Are you dosing? Water Changes?


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

houseofcards said:


> Sounds good. How long has the HC been in there? Are you dosing? Water Changes?


I began the tank around the first of October with some hc, dhg, and a dwarf red lily. Added a great deal more hc & clover mid-October. The dhg has returned from the first trim looking stellar. 

The hc was looking fine until I added the Aquasky, which was originally 6" above water level. The hc began looking more yellow with areas of brown. Thinking the light may have been too close and I raised it 2", and backed off the photoperiod from 10 to 9 hrs. 

At this time, I'm dosing daily 1x each Brightly K and Step 1. CO2 injected with photoperiod of 9 hours. Small water changes are 2-3x/wk still as I'm trying to control the diatom algae. 

Over the last couple of days, there look to be a few patches of hc brighting up.


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

Finally was able to get a clearer picture...

it's hard to see the brown areas as they blend in so well with the aquasoil (mostly in the hc lying between the stones and towards the back, but the yellowing is more visible.


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

It looks to me that you have some startup algae issues that might be interfering with max growth. Some die off under those conditions might be expected. I would trim alot and keep the tank as clean as possible. The light in itself IMO wouldn't harm the HC unless algae prevented growth. You have AS and co2 in a new tank so nutrient wise your set for a while.


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

houseofcards said:


> It looks to me that you have some startup algae issues that might be interfering with max growth. Some die off under those conditions might be expected. I would trim alot and keep the tank as clean as possible. The light in itself IMO wouldn't harm the HC unless algae prevented growth. You have AS and co2 in a new tank so nutrient wise your set for a while.


I see... the algae did bloom with the fauna and new light, so that makes sense timing wise too. 

So keep up the frequent small water changes and vacuuming the algae with air line tubing. Other than that, should I look at adding something like phyton git?

Thanks for your help, houseofcards :smile:


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## houseofcards (Mar 21, 2009)

Definitely do what you can to keep ti clean. I can't comment on phyton git since I never used it. If the tank is only a month old or so personally I would treat it as new and use carbon or other organic absorbents. Also try to be active in trimming the HC bad spots.


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## bluestems (Feb 7, 2012)

houseofcards said:


> Definitely do what you can to keep ti clean. I can't comment on phyton git since I never used it. If the tank is only a month old or so personally I would treat it as new and use carbon or other organic absorbents. Also try to be active in trimming the HC bad spots.


Will do, although trimming out the dead growth tends to dislodge the plant. I probably need some sharper or pointer scissors. 

Today there's a lot more light green growth coming in, so I'm hopeful. :smile:


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