# Is this ordinary riccia or a special type?



## jlam86 (Dec 7, 2010)

hey all,

I've been collecting/growing riccia for the past month now and I have a fair bit of this stuff growing at the top of my tank. The idea was to carpet the whole bottom of my tank. I can't see how I am able to make my riccia look like this even if I were to tie it down with a hairnet etc. I've done a bit of research and it seems that this is a "japanese riccia" which actually submerses?

Riccia fluitans

Any pointers on how I can get my riccia to look like that or must I get this special "japanese" type and start from scratch all over again?

tia


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## Blackbar (Apr 23, 2010)

Spread your riccia in a thin layer around the top surface of a flat to slightly rounded rock. Use a fine hair net - you probably can wrap it around twice and then tie it at the bottom. In two to three weeks (with good light and ferts) it will have grown so you no longer see the net, and you will get the effect shown in the picture. If you give it a "haircut" regularly the riccia will stay healthy for a long time. If you don't, eventually it will grow too dense, obscuring the light from the underlayer. Eventually this underlayer will die from lack of light and the riccia will lift off the rock and float to the surface.

Oh, and to answer your questions, all the riccia I've encountered works this way.


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## jlam86 (Dec 7, 2010)

nice! I hope my normal output dual fluorescent is sufficient lighting... lol

What fertilizers do you use?


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## _TiDy_ (Apr 29, 2010)

the ricca i have in my tank is a beast, leave a tiny bit and it grows non stop. running pressurized co2 and i have two t5 HO bulbs.


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