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Riccia Fluitans behavior in different environments.
Hi guys! How's things? Anyway, I have a little Q about Riccia.
A while ago I got a clump of it, and had heard how hard (light intensive /
water sensitive) this plant is. I lucked out somehow - it's extremely
prolific in 4 aquariums now. But I'm having trouble keeping it alive in a
little 2.5g. I'm raising a killi fry in there, for now, and have been
attempting to give him some shade by way of a floating Riccia mat. Except
the Riccia is being a little difficult. It turns yellow and dies within a
few weeks. The little 2.5g tank does not have problems with other plants -
even the vaunted sun gobbling glossostigma elatinoides flourishes there. The
little 2.5g is unheated, lighted by a 15w compact flourescent bulb, water
chemistry is painfully maintained within the ranges acceptable to A.
Gardneri Akuri & their fry (parents are not in this aquarium). Also thriving
are hemianthus micranthemoides (? did i get that one right?) and
micranthemum micr... I do inject co2 into this tank with a modified DIY
(2liter soda bottle system, but i used a 20oz bottle instead and have a
regulator to adjust the co2 dispensed so i don't fry out the little killi
with an overdose, or cause some kind of ph crash ... etc . . .
Anyhow, I have another aquarium here, and the riccia, left unattended has
detached from the rock and now forms a huge, thick, luscious,
astro-turf-like mat on the surface. A good chunk of it seems to be even
growing mostly above the water's surface. This tank, and all the others
where the riccia flourishes, are lit by dual-compact-bulbs - 10000k daylight
or something & a blue actinic for a total of 32 watts, roughly equaling the
wattage of light spead across the little 2.5g.
The only difference I can discover is that the little tank does not have
actinic lighting... but that's like ... mainly for saltwater and such ... i
know ... i just started buying those lights because i like the hue they cast
over the tank and how they bring the fish & plant colors out.
Could this be the problem with maintaining riccia in the little tank? arg
help
Thanks.
-Bree