# Barebottom Tank with Marimo Floor?



## KaelaByte (Nov 23, 2015)

So I know the title does a poor job at describing this, but what I thought I might like to do is get a hoard of small marimo balls (not sure if I spelled that correctly) and use them as a carpeting with some floating plants on top. My bettas never really explore the bottom as the seem to preffer playing with the roots of whatever my floating plant is (duckweed is one I think, and something with super long roots and bigger leaves. Grows SO fast). 

Would this work? All the crypts etc dont seem to do well despite my substrate being a decent brand and getting liquid ferts 2x a month. 

If the marimos are a bit loosely packed would they work for hiding spaces for shrimp? And possibly have hornwort for the middle of the tank in case my bettas explore there when im not looking.


Also if marimos dont work for this does anyone here know about using moss for carpeting? Or that hairgrass stuff?


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## Aqua Aurora (Oct 4, 2013)

Yes you spelled right, marimo. Will you just keep them in their ball shape or break them apart to lay flat on something (maybe slate) to make a 'carpet' and tie it down with fishing line (marimo never forms roots so best to sue line/thread that does not break down).
Crypts tend to melt when first planted and can take over a month to acclimate to a new tank. Keeping consistent temp, fert regime (they don't need mush as slow growers), pH, and not moving the crypt will let it settle in.
Are you keeping any other plants potted in the tank? Or only plant to have marimo on bottom and floaters at top? If only marimo+floaters I'd recommend some other decor/hides/plants as such an empty tank can stress some bettas.
Marimo won't do anything for nitrates-its a insanely slow grower (5mm a year) but fast grower floaters and other plants will hep absorb your nitrates.


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## KaelaByte (Nov 23, 2015)

Yea I heard duckweed helps alot and by bettas love them, ill have hornwort but no stem plants I dont think. The noss balls I would keep whole, but other moss etc id have over a gravel layer so I could put root tabs in (LFS advice, I think theyre pretty good but wanted to check here for opinions). Its a ten gallon split with a filter so I dont think ammonia is too big an issue, ive almost never had it register anyway with 1-2x 30% water changes.

For hides I have some tubes for shrimp once I het the courage to buy some, and was going to build my own hides for the bettas. I saw some people here used perler beads? (Thought the siblings would like to help with that if they are really fish safe) or keep an eye out for some cups.

Am I missing anything? Also what carpeting plants might yall reccomend? 
Water is about 81 degrees F, med to high light leds, flourish ferts atm.


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## Brendykins (Feb 26, 2016)

It really depends for carpeting plants. If you were using Marimo balls as the carpet then I wouldn't get anything other than that. You could try Dwarf Baby Tears, Dwarf Sagittaria, and Java moss (you'd have to tie it to something). both the Dwarf Baby Tears and Dwarf Sagittaria would require some decent lighting and some substance in the substrate. 

Anubias would also do fine in your tank as a mid-area plant as you could literally tie it to a piece of decor in your tank and it'd be fine. Hornwort is also very good for nitrates as it grows like nobody's business (mine is already growing and it has been in my tank for 24 hours), just don't bury it, let it float. 

Give this thread a read through though, it was very beneficial.
http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=658738


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## Aqua Aurora (Oct 4, 2013)

Side note:marimo is not a moss, its a specialized form of slow growing hair algae. They are often called 'moss balls' but that is an inaccurate term.


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## KaelaByte (Nov 23, 2015)

Hmm, well my LFS is getting a shipment friday so I'll see that they get in, but im worried about the gravel I have. Should I switch to a sand substrate? Id hate to crash my cycle by changing everything since I only have 1/2 g hospital tanks rn.

Maybe a hairgrass that grows a bit longer, and some baby tears to make a fake "trail" with marimo "boulders" ? Might that work? I know both of those are used a lot in aquascaping


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## Brendykins (Feb 26, 2016)

"Side note:marimo is not a moss, its a specialized form of slow growing hair algae. They are often called 'moss balls' but that is an inaccurate term." - This is very true

Your substrate will be fine. Some flourish tabs (or something of that nature) would be a good addition for underneath the gravel so your rooting plants have something to get nutrients from. Dwarf Baby Tears and Dwarf Sagittaria are used in Aquascaping all the time, just note that both the duckweed and Hornwort won't look pretty but it will give you a great jungle look with lots of good biogeochemical cycling. 

Dwarf Sagittaria combined with the Dwarf Baby Tears should give the illusion that your Dwarf Sagittaria is longer than it actually is. If you wanted a really tall grass like plant you could get Jungle Val, but it gets huge and should be planted in the back. 

For the look of your tank that is all up to you. It sounds like you have an idea and you should stick with it (it sounds awesome too).


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