# Trimming my Dwarf Sagittaria



## iskandarreza (Jul 4, 2011)

My Dwarf Sagittaria has grown very long. More than 6 inches in some spots and it's sending runners everywhere. It's only been 15 days since I got it, 12 days since I planted it in my dirt tank. Dwarf is a misnomer...

So I trimmed it like how you would mow the lawn. This won't kill the plant now, would it? I took the opportunity to trim my java moss too. It wasn't growing as rapidly as the dwarf sagittaria, but it was covered in brown algae and no matter how many times I shake it off, it gets trapped in the moss again and again.

In my other tank when I trim the moss, it grew faster and denser. Plus the bits of moss that float away and get stuck on somewhere soon grows into another clump.

Anyway back to the Dwarf Sagittaria, I didn't harm it did I by trimming it? I cut it short to about 3 inches long. I want to give chance to this red-leafed plant to grow because the DS was starting to overgrow around it. What is this red-leafed plant by the way?


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

IME when you mow sag, the leafs you cut will slowly die and be replaced by new ones. the red plant is some sort of crypt.


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## iskandarreza (Jul 4, 2011)

Oh ok. Will the new ones be longer or shorter?


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## nonconductive (Jan 29, 2010)

i guess it depends.... mine stays short until it grows too thick, then it starts shooting up tall blades. or if it is too shaded it grows taller.


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## iskandarreza (Jul 4, 2011)

Alright, thanks for sharing your experience. I'll just keep on trimming it until it becomes compact. Just trimmed a few other plants in there. They're all growing pretty fast except for the Ceylon hygrophyla. 

Do you think the Sag is growing tall and the hygrophyla is growing slowly because my lighting is inadequate? I'm using 2x 24W T5 tubes in this 15g.


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## johnny313 (Apr 15, 2011)

nonconductive said:


> i guess it depends.... mine stays short until it grows too thick, then it starts shooting up tall blades. or if it is too shaded it grows taller.


mine grows over 12" high in my 120 with 4T5's


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## newbieplanter (Jan 13, 2013)

iskandarreza said:


> My Dwarf Sagittaria has grown very long. More than 6 inches in some spots and it's sending runners everywhere. It's only been 15 days since I got it, 12 days since I planted it in my dirt tank. Dwarf is a misnomer...
> 
> So I trimmed it like how you would mow the lawn. This won't kill the plant now, would it? I took the opportunity to trim my java moss too. It wasn't growing as rapidly as the dwarf sagittaria, but it was covered in brown algae and no matter how many times I shake it off, it gets trapped in the moss again and again.
> 
> ...


I know it's been two years since u posted this but at the time u had this tank were u running a CO2 system? Cuz I'm having the same problem with my java moss getting the brown algae on it too and I beat it off with a bar b que skewer and it comes right back on it I also started a moss wall and its doin the same. The first moss I had n still have is on a piece of drift wood on top the substrate, the tips are really clean an green maybe about 1/8"-1/4" of it an doesn't look like its growing but i kinda know it is. I run a DIY CO2 set up.


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