Glosso grazed

[BAM]

I wanted to try Glossostigma, so I bought a beautiful potted and rooted one to try. Within two days the discus have grazed it almost back into the gravel, leaving stems only about 1/4 of an inch long at best, no leaves left. I ahve watched several discus peck at it, and any leaves torn off get eated by other discus while they float arround the tank. I have considered shielding it for a while, but any shield will cut down on the light and is not a long term solution.

Is this common and is there any hope. I am also trying baby tears (Hemianthus micranthemoidies), and they leave that alone. I could also consider the dwarf baby tears (Hemianthus callitrichoides).

Any thoughts?

Thanks,
BAM

[kush]

You might want to try Marsilea quadrifolia. Once its established, especially under good lights with CO2, it looks pretty much like glosso, maybe even better. Its actually a form of fern and has tougher leaves and stems and it roots more tenaciously than glosso. Usually you get it in pots with long emersed-form stems - just cut them down and the root will start to send out the immersed form. Start with just a small section of lawn because its fearsome-ugly for the first couple of weeks until it gets established, but then it will creep all over your tank quickly.

[rwong2k]

i had the same problem with my glosso =( all gone
but for HC i've had more success in cooler tank temps vs. warmer tank temps required by discus

[exv152]

Glossostigma, Hemianthus callitrichoides, and Hemianthus micranthemoidies all require high levels of light and good CO2. Another huge problem with all three of the above is that they must be carefully planted with tweezers into the substrate, and take awhile to root properly; that and the fact that discus like to graze from the bottom makes growing these plants a huge challenge.

[kush]

Supposedly, the HC will do OK without CO2. I've tried it a couple of times and haven't had much luck with it - its just gotten all gunked up. The M. quadrifolia, incidentally, does not need CO2 or high-intensity lighting although it will be denser and brighter with both (but BAM most likely has both with glosso and baby tears).