Jadenlea Posted September 5, 2015 Report Share Posted September 5, 2015 Ive had this moss in the tank over a year. It was doing beautifully. Thick , dark luscious green. I believe it was xmas moss but I could be wrong. A couple weeks ago I noticed the tips started turning yellowish brown. Now it seems to be turning that color all over. Anyone have ideas on what might be causing it? I will say that the tank is empty now other than an Otoculis to keep it cycled for new shrimp . Could it just be not enough waste to fertilize? The other plants in the tank seem unaffected. thanks. JosephKex and MableBile 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chibikaie Posted September 5, 2015 Report Share Posted September 5, 2015 I would check on the following: Age of light - unless it's an LED designed to produce the correct output for many years, most fluorescents need replacement anywhere from every 6 months on up. What other plants are in the tank? If you have a lot of weedy, fast-growing stem plants, and they are doing well - they may well be sucking up the available nutrients, and the slower growing moss is losing out. If you have instead a lot of root feeders, and the substrate hasn't been vacuumed - then these guys might be growing nicely because they have plenty of nutrients, but the water column might be depleted. Any supplements/fertilizers? Water changes? Is the oto getting any extra food? Even plain tap water can supply needed micronutrients that will get depleted by normal plant growth, and fish food (uneaten or processed by an animal) can provide nitrogen and phosphorus. Has there been a change in temperature? Mosses often prefer cooler temps that most shrimp enjoy. I know I'm in the middle of a heat wave - if your tank is as well, that could negatively impact the moss, but not less finicky plants. (Personally, I have always found moss to be very difficult to grow.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jadenlea Posted September 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 5, 2015 I guess it could be the heat.. Once I removed the shrimp from the tank, I stopped worrying about the temps I dont think the tank has gone much over 80 though. There hasnt been a water change since taking the shrimp out so the parameter should all be the same as when it was thriving. I will be taking all the plants out soon to change the substrate. Do you think flourish would help? I have a bottle of it .. Most of the other plants are all low light, easy to grow plants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chibikaie Posted September 6, 2015 Report Share Posted September 6, 2015 80 F is enough to make moss unhappy. Plus, many easy to grow plants get that classification because they will grow under almost any conditions - this means they aren't a good barometer for ideal plant conditions and also that they will have hogged whatever nutrients were left in the water. I don't think the Flourish will hurt, but keep it mind that it doesn't have a lot of macronutrients in it. It's more for micronutrient supplementation. How about adding some waste water from another tank's water change until you redo the tank? Or you can try pulling any healthy moss you have left and putting it into a container of tank water, and leaving it on a windowsill (assuming it doesn't get too hot). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jadenlea Posted September 6, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 6, 2015 Good ideas Chibik. I will take it out today and see what i can do to save it. If there is much left to save. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted September 6, 2015 Report Share Posted September 6, 2015 Moss is a fooler. Sometimes it appears dead on arrival, and can grow green shoots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jadenlea Posted September 6, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 6, 2015 Ya but this moss has been in the tank for about a year and was gorgeous Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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