Peacock moss

Care at a glance

Overview

Tie or glue small portions to wood or rock and it will attach on its own within a few weeks. It stays compact and forms defined triangular fronds under low to medium light, and higher light plus CO2 pushes denser, tidier growth. Trim it back periodically to keep the shape and to stop old inner growth from trapping detritus. It is undemanding, takes a wide temperature range, and works well in shrimp tanks.

In the wild

Peacock moss comes from Southeast Asia, where it encrusts rocks, driftwood, and other submerged surfaces in slow-moving or still streams and shaded pools. It clings to hardscape with rhizoids rather than rooting into substrate. In the wild it forms low, creeping mats in soft to moderately hard, slightly acidic to neutral water.

Good to know

It is an undescribed Taxiphyllum species sold under the cultivar name 'Peacock', so there is no formally accepted binomial. The genus Taxiphyllum sits in the family Hypnaceae, the same group that includes true Java moss (Taxiphyllum barbieri). The 'Peacock' name refers to the tight, overlapping, fan or triangle shaped fronds that give it a feathered, peacock-tail look under good light.

Did you know

Peacock moss and 'spiky moss' are so often mixed up in the trade that many bags sold as one are actually the other, since both are undescribed Taxiphyllum forms with similar tight, layered fronds.

Related plants

• Spiky moss

  Taxiphyllum sp. 'Spiky'

  Low lightEpiphyte2 in (5 cm)
• Flame moss

  Taxiphyllum sp. 'Flame'

  Low lightEpiphyte3.1 in (8 cm)

• 

  Java moss

  Taxiphyllum barbieri

  Low lightEpiphyte3.9 in (10 cm)

• 

  Taiwan moss

  Taxiphyllum alternans

  Low lightEpiphyte3.9 in (10 cm)

• 

  Christmas moss

  Vesicularia montagnei

  Low lightEpiphyte2 in (5 cm)

• 

  Singapore moss

  Vesicularia dubyana

  Low lightEpiphyte2 in (5 cm)