Pros and cons of moss alternatives to a “moss wall”.

[Pepere]

I have some plastic crafting mesh to start making “moss walls” in order to deploy them for photo day for Dutch Aquascapes for AGA contest next year.

Honestly I abhor the look. I personally much prefer a plain black backdrop myself.

And I seriously detest Java Moss. It is a scourge nearly as bad as duckweed in my mind…. I seriously despise the stuff.

So, what about alternatives?

A discussion of various alternatives and the pros and cons of each would be great…

 

[techman81]

I have some plastic crafting mesh to start making “moss walls” in order to deploy them for photo day for Dutch Aquascapes for AGA contest next year.

Honestly I abhor the look. I personally much prefer a plain black backdrop myself.

And I seriously detest Java Moss. It is a scourge nearly as bad as duckweed in my mind…. I seriously despise the stuff.

So, what about alternatives?

A discussion of various alternatives and the pros and cons of each would be great…

I was wondering if moss walls were a requirement for the competitive Dutch tanks. I think @Kwyet's looked good but I wouldn't want to do one myself.

 

[Pepere]

I was wondering if moss walls were a requirement for the competitive Dutch tanks.

My understanding is that they are not technically a requirement, but if two tanks are otherwise equally scored, the one with a “moss wall” comes out ahead…

I still absolutely despise the looks of them…

 

[Pepere]

Hmm,,, not a lot of responses as yet..

How about starting out with just listing alternative plants people have used?

I have heard of people using Buce and Anubias Nana Petite.

Are there other plant options?

And in the scenario of mosses, are there some significantly better than Java moss?

 

[techman81]

I assume it should be a darker shade of green?

 

[*Ci*]

An Anubias pinto or white would make a stunning wall!

 

[techman81]

An Anubias pinto or white would make a stunning wall!

Pinto is awesome, but unless you have a farm tank full of it, it would be very expensive or take a long time to fill a wall.

 

[Kwyet]

I believe the wall should always be dark. I was told it should disappear into the background and create mood “rather than being an active participant.” I think it was because too much was visible, but it also applies to your question.

The winner this year used a liverwort (Plagiochila interregma) and a fern (Crepidomanes sp “grape leaf”).

I have in my notes that past entries have used these plants on walls:

Weeping Moss
Lomariopsis lineata
Microsorum Narrow K
Taxyphillum alternans
Riccardia chamedryfolia
Anubias nana petite
Buce

I couldn’t tell you the pros and cons of them though, other than the con of moss bits breaking off and floating to other parts of the tank.

 

[Pepere]

I couldn’t tell you the pros and cons of them though, other than the con of moss bits breaking off and floating to other parts of the tank.

My guess that the Buce and Anubis’s cons are that they either takes forever to get coverage or is very expensive…


Moss bits and fragments… did I mention how much I hate moss?

 

[Kwyet]

Yes, yes you did, lol!

I was also thinking Buce and Anubias would be easier to get algae.

 

[techman81]

Moss bits and fragments… did I mention how much I hate moss?

 

[*Ci*]

I’m wondering if a person could take any carpeting plant, grow it out onto a horizontal screen laying on top of substrate in another tank, then take it out and use it vertically for a final camera shot in a scaped tank. Maybe it would even do fine once it is hung up on a wall, but for an initial thick covering, maybe it needs to start horizontal ….

 

[deepgreen]

Something else that might work is using elevated pots or baskets and use forground plants. Something dark would be nice to keep the depth of the tank. I could imagine a wall of Bacopa salzmannii "purple", or maybe dark Cryptos that bend the leaves down if the light is deep enough or does not hit them directly. Elevated pots or pots attached to a frame would open up a lot of possibilities like the tilted carpet plants 'CI was pointing out.