Moss Ball?

[Goomba3]

I'm not really a newbie to bettas, I have had them for years. I am, however, a newbie to live plants. I can't keep them alive! I used to have cactus and bamboo, the supposedly "no-care" plants, but I've always killed them. However, last year when I got Goomba (RIP), I decided to try putting bamboo in his tank. Well, nearly a year later and the bamboo is still going strong. I don't even do anything to it, just rinse the roots gently when I clean the tanks.

Now, I've been curious about getting more live plants for my 2.5 gallon tank that has Cheep-Cheep in it. Not a ton, because, obviously, it's a 2.5 gallon. (The bamboo is in a 1-gallon.) I was thinking about a moss ball, but I wasn't sure how that would work. What are your experiences with them? Are they a good idea? How do I need to take care of them? (Clearly I'm paranoid about killing plants, I do not have a good track record!)

[Goomba3]

Bump. Just an itty bitty one...

[Littlebittyfish]

I don't have any yet, but i believe they just need to be rolled around every now and then.

[MoePaac]

Marimo balls are easy to care for. I just wring mine out every now and then. I also am sure to flip it over when I wring it out (they catch junk in the water very well). If you don't flip it, the spot that is constantly in contact with the bottom will develop a little brown spot.

Their discovery/background is really interesting as well. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marimo. They grow very slowly.

[Tomsk]

Or get something like an Anubias which are happy in low light tanks and don't require any attention.Though beware,you dont plant Anubias in the substrate,the roots need to be above it.So just tie it onto some decor in the tank (which makes it easier if you have to empty the tank when doing 100% W/C) plus the wide leaves make lovely hiding places/hammocks for Betta's

Tomsk

[Goomba3]

Oooh good idea, Tomsk. I basically need something that doesn't require a lot of attention, because I suck at keeping plants alive. Again, the only reason the bamboo survived is because it's kept in water all the time and I don't do anything to it. I will have to take a look at Petsmart the next time I am in there and see what kind of plants they have. I thought the moss balls looked cool, and different, which is why I had them in mind, first.

[danifacetastic]

I ordered a set of 5 marimo balls off ebay for $9 (they sell them for $7 a piece in PetSmart) and all you have to do is plop them in there and turn them occasionally. I have to push mine around anyway when I'm vacumning the gravel so that's all the care they require.

[Goomba3]

Thank you for the advise, Daniface. I'll definitely take a look online and at the pet store tonight.

[danifacetastic]

No problem!

A warning though...the seller off Ebay I got mine from was in the UK ( I live in the US ) and it took about a month for the balls to finally get here. They were in great condition though.

[demonr6]

Originally Posted by danifacetastic

No problem!

A warning though...the seller off Ebay I got mine from was in the UK ( I live in the US ) and it took about a month for the balls to finally get here. They were in great condition though.

Holy crap! Which seller was that? I was looking at some on eBay too just recently.