Aquarium mosses

Aquarium mosses: java moss and its relatives, grown tied to rock or wood, spread over the substrate or left loose. Every moss in the catalog is compared on light, CO₂, difficulty and growth rate.

Plants
8
Height
1–3 in (3–8 cm)
Water temperature
64–79 °F (18–26 °C)
Type

8 Moss

Compare all 8 side by side

All 8 aquarium mosses

Vesicularia montagnei clump with branching shoots, Riccia fluitans in the background Photo: Storm from Canada, CC BY-SA 2.0 Christmas moss Easy moss for low and medium light. Low–medium lightOn rock or wood
Flame moss growing in upright, twisting tufts on driftwood Flame moss Easy moss for low and medium light. Low–medium lightForeground, Carpet, On rock or wood
Fissidens fontanus moss growing under water Photo: Alie / C.A. Kratzer, CC BY-SA 4.0 Fissidens fontanus Easy moss for medium light. Medium lightForeground, On rock or wood
Java moss (Taxiphyllum barbieri) growing as a dense mat in an aquarium Photo: Xedoo, CC BY-SA 4.0 Java moss Easy moss for low and medium light. Low–medium lightForeground, On rock or wood
Peacock moss (Taxiphyllum sp. Peacock) growing over driftwood in an aquarium Photo: Yercaud-elango, CC BY 4.0 Peacock moss Easy moss for low and medium light. Low–medium lightForeground, Carpet, On rock or wood
Spiky moss (Taxiphyllum sp. Spiky) with stiff upright shoots growing on driftwood in a home aquarium Spiky moss Easy moss for low and medium light. Low–medium lightForeground, Background, Carpet, On rock or wood
Weeping moss drooping over driftwood in a home aquarium Weeping moss Easy moss for low and medium light. Low–medium lightForeground, Carpet, On rock or wood
Willow moss (Fontinalis antipyretica) strands growing under water in a pool Photo: W.carter, CC BY-SA 4.0 Willow moss Easy moss for low and medium light. Low–medium lightForeground, Carpet, On rock or wood

How to choose

  1. All mosses listed here are rated for low to medium light and none of them needs added CO₂ in our sources, so the choice is mostly about shape: drooping, upright, triangular or flat.

  2. Mosses have no roots that take up food from the substrate. Tie or glue them to rock or wood, or press them into a mesh, until they hold on by themselves.

  3. Most mosses here grow slowly. A thin layer spread over a surface fills in faster than a thick clump.

Compare side by side

Leaf color Placement
Christmas moss Moss 1–3 in (3–8 cm) Low–medium Easy On rock or wood
Fissidens fontanus Moss – Medium Easy Foreground, On rock or wood
Flame moss Moss – Low–medium Easy Foreground, Carpet, On rock or wood
Java moss Moss – Low–medium Easy Foreground, On rock or wood
Peacock moss Moss – Low–medium Easy Foreground, Carpet, On rock or wood
Spiky moss Moss – Low–medium Easy Foreground, Background, Carpet, On rock or wood
Weeping moss Moss – Low–medium Easy Foreground, Carpet, On rock or wood
Willow moss Moss – Low–medium Easy Foreground, Carpet, On rock or wood

Values marked like this (estimated) are estimates.

Frequently asked questions

Do aquarium mosses need CO₂?

None of the mosses in the catalog is rated as needing added CO₂. The CO₂ field on each moss page says what its source reports.

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