Willow moss

Care at a glance

Overview

Willow moss is an undemanding, low-tech moss best suited to cooler tanks (it prefers water below about 24 C and slows or melts if kept warm for long). Tie or glue it to driftwood or rock; it needs no substrate and no CO2. Give it low to moderate light, since strong light quickly causes algae to smother the fine fronds. Growth is slow, so it stays tidy, but good water movement keeps it clean and healthy.

In the wild

A widespread cool-water moss found across the Northern Hemisphere, growing in cold, well-oxygenated streams, rivers, and lakes throughout Europe, temperate Asia, and North America. In the wild it anchors to rocks, submerged wood, and other permanent objects in flowing water, forming long dark-green trailing strands that can reach 60 cm. It is highly variable in appearance, taking on different forms depending on flow and light.

Good to know

Fontinalis antipyretica belongs to the family Fontinalaceae and, like all mosses, has no true roots. It attaches by rhizoids to any hard surface and reproduces by spores or simple division. The species name antipyretica means 'against fever' and refers to a historical folk belief; the plant was also once packed around chimneys and stoves in Scandinavia to reduce fire risk, which gave rise to the common name fountain moss.

Did you know

It is one of the few aquarium mosses that genuinely favors cold water, making it a natural choice for unheated coldwater and white cloud minnow tanks where tropical mosses would struggle.

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