Marimo Ball (algae/moss ball)

[Corbin]

They Arived today :D:D:D

Sorry about the murky water, the green water is still clearing up:yes:

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[Melody]

Aquatic Tumbleweeds - they are so cool looking.:smile:

[Corbin]

:D maybe in a few months ill have some to sell ;)

[Melody]

Oh cool, I like to experience killing as many plant species as possible :laugh: .

Interesting story behind the Marimo Balls (http://www.ddas.co.uk/articles/lakeballs.html) in the hobby.

[Corbin]

whoa, thats some cool info. well i dont mind if mine are fake or not there still cool.
there almost like an animal, they have a mind of its own, the fact that it can make it self float if it needs more light is amazing :yes:

[MobileImage]

You might have some for sale in the future, but definitely not in a few months ;)
They grow VERY slow.

[Corbin]

You might have some for sale in the future, but definitely not in a few months ;)
They grow VERY slow.

i have magic abilitys to increase the grow of plants;) its kinda like giving them a cane ;);)
lol whatever.. im sure ill have some soon enough

[Melody]

They are a fascinating little plant. Much better than a pet rock :laugh: .

Its actually the love plant you know. The legend says that the daughter of the chief fell in love with a commoner and when her family objected, the couple drowned in the river. Their hearts are the Marimo Balls. It is given as a token of love and affection and giving it can achieve your heart's desire.

Therefore, out of true friendship, I would let you give them to me so you can achieve your heart's desire. No, don't thank me, glad to do it. :Angel:

[Corbin]

awww its such a nice plant :smile:

[mixixe]

Marimo balls take years and years and years to double in size :) Those balls in the lake that they come from in japan are probably hundreds or years old.

Marimo balls are fascinating! The lighting in my tank isn't high enough but with enough lighting they were pearl and float to the top to get even more light. and the tumbleweed aspect is neat too :)

I like this picture of them

http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/attachment.php?attachmentid=10&d=1075598885

[CACAdmin]

Those marimo balls are cool. Where did you get yours from Corbin?

[Corbin]

Aquaticmagic @ ebay

[PintoHawk]

Ok, I realize this thread is like a thousand years old... but I want some more information about Moss Balls, please... I have been googling but not finding what I want to know.

1. How do Moss Balls benefit the aquarium?
2. How do you propogate them?
3. What do they require to survive/flourish?
4. What aquatic creatures eat them, if any?
5. How much should I expect to pay for Moss Balls the size of a loonie? A baseball?

Thanks for any/all help. :)

[Melody]

When something is pricey, you can bet it has issues with production. Marimo balls grow very slowly, but will grow fastest with high light and Co2. When/if you finally get one big enough that it goes hollow inside and floats, you can split it into more than one plant. Then you have to wait for those to grow.

Price would depend on size, location, competition, market saturation, etc. There's no short answer for that one, but with the time and cost involved with high lighting and Co2, I imagine the only people who make money with them is Tropica.

[CACAdmin]

I have a few which I got from two sources: Pacific Aquatics (http://www.pacificaquatics.ca) and Aquanourriplus (http://www.aquanourriplus.com) However, I can't recall how much I paid for them.

Also here is another thread (http://www.canadianaquariumconnection.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5074) with some discussion on moss balls which you might find helpful.

[flshgear]

the plants that you have in the pictures are probably 5-7 years old. and you can just cut them in half and then they will eventually grow round again.

[firestorm]

I didn't like the moss balls that I had. I eventually tossed them because they didn't do much of anything but sit there like a green blob :laugh: I don't really know what exactly they are good for, but I bet shrimp would certainly love them.

[CACAdmin]

They do soak up nutrients. I don't have shrimp but I think you're right. Shrimp would probably love them. I can just see larger varieties of shrimp rolling them around. :laugh:

[tigerbarb420]

Apparently they are helpful in combating algae. I read that they use up alot of the excess nutrients that causes algae outbreaks. I've never seen one in Edmonton.

[Gobies et al]

My experience with Marimo Balls....

I got my Marimo Balls at Petland in Red Deer and I've seen them available in Calgary. I can't say that I have looked in Edmonton. Currently the price seems to be about $10 for the small size ~1.5", and $13-15 for the large ~2 - 2.5". They are much cheaper on eBay but I don't know what shipping charges would bring it to.

My Rosy Barbs were determined to eat them. They did manage to create a crater into the side of one. I collected up the pieces torn out and rolled that into a very small ball making the start of another. I haven't let the more determined plant eaters have access to them.

The balls are actually all moss and not hollow. If one is pulled apart the inside part is dormant and will grow with exposure to light. They will need to be rolled to create the round shape. Maybe, the very large ones become hollow but what I have aren't. Some people have torn up the balls and flatten them out and fasten them on wood. It looks very lush dark green.

I haven't done anything special to help mine flourish. They are in a low tech tank, low to moderate light and I fertilize the tank with trace and iron every couple of weeks. When conditions are right, the pearling will make them buoyant and they will float. That hasn't happened in my tanks, probably because of being low tech.

Shrimp and baby snails pick through the algae (it has the harsh texture like hair algae cropped short) for the detritus that gets trapped in it.

As Jay said, they are a good nutrient sponge.

:smile:

[firestorm]

Yeah that makes sense. I did have one left that was kinda brown in color. I managed to rescue it from a tank that was holding one fish, and I let the hair algae grow out of control in. It was still green in the middle. I placed it in my shrimp tank where immediately the shrimp jumped on and started nibbling away at whatever it was holding. I saw some at Big Al's here today, just not worth purchasing for me since I have some good live plants in most tanks anyhow. I did pick myself up some nice rotala wallichii though.

[CACAdmin]

Glad to hear you treated yourself to something... and there is always room for another plant. :wink:

[firestorm]

considering I have about 7-8 tanks I can put live plants in, there will always be more room for plants :laugh:

I do think the marimo ball might survive. I just have to trim off a bunch of the dead from around it and roll it up into a new ball. I might just leave it in my shrimp tank, seems they kinda like it.

[CACAdmin]

I might just leave it in my shrimp tank, seems they kinda like it.
They probably look upon it as their toy to play with. :wink:

[ron bruce]

Bought one today on my little shopping spree. The Marimo cost me about $9 for the plant and about $30 in gas but it was a nice outing. :laugh:

[brnttoast]

i have a pretty large moss ball that is trying to devide, every once in a while i remove it and roll it back up cause a skunk loach has made its home in the crevis and i'd hate to see him homeless if it ever splits in 2