Mariano ball topiary???

[Magnum Man]

I did up 4 balls standing on each other ( stainless wire through the middle… if I were as artistic as some of you, I would do topiaries

 

[Sgooosh]

I did up 4 balls standing on each other ( stainless wire through the middle… if I were as artistic as some of you, I would do topiariesView attachment 330127View attachment 330129

that looks interesting! now we just need a helpful edward scissor"fins"

 

[Magnum Man]

Scissor tail Rasbora... we could name him Ed

 

[Back in the fold]

Scissor Tail Rasbora’s ! Those are cool . Haven’t seen one in ages . I like small silvery minnow type fish .

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Scissor tail Rasbora... we could name him Ed
View attachment 330138

I see what you did there!

You should absolutely make a topiary! Whittle a bit of wood, stick some moss on it, you're golden!

 

[Magnum Man]

I'm not very artistic... I could do an arch

 

[Nells250]

I would love to get one of those... have my eye on one seller who has small ones supposedly in stock...

The wire doesn't hurt them at all, eh? How dense are those things inside?

 

[Magnum Man]

Mine are solid, like they were rolled into balls

 

[Magnum Man]

I nearly have enough balls, so to speak, to try a topiary… I just going to do an 8 inch “floating” circle ( it’ll actually be mounted on the bottom, with about a 2 inch piece of plain wire ( it’s all stainless ) holding it up off the bottom… since the Marimo balls are kind of Asian, it’s going into the Asian tank, and has to be able to withstand the 7 - 8 inch Tinfoil barbs… I currently have 12 loose Marimo balls n my South American tank, holding them until they get slid onto the stainless ring, when I have collected enough to fill it

 

[Magnum Man]

Ordering a couple orders of balls each month… 4 more arrived today, getting close to enough to fill the ring… most are just tumbling around the tank…

 

[Magnum Man]

Taking a long time but my Marimo topiary is about 2/3 done… the pandas jumped right on to it… they actually found the exposed stainless the most interesting… the tin foils are eyeing it skeptical… but imagine in a few hours, they’ll be swimming through the ring… because these algae balls are Asian, this is going into the Asian tank… base will be covered with substrate in a few weeks, when I get enough balls to finish the ring

 

[Magnum Man]

it took longer than I thought, but less than a week, and the skeptical Tin Foils have taken nicely to the ring… got 6 balls floating around the tank, will pull the ring out and finish it when the next order of balls comes

 

[TwoTankAmin]

You do realize that what causes the algae to form itself into a ball is the wave action in the lakes where they are found? In order for them to maintain their round shape they neeed to roll around which they do in nature. This esposes them to light on all sides and the mpvement helps to keep them round as well.

I kept "moss balls" many years ago and learned that oif i did not turn them regularly they became lumps not balls.

Common Problems With Marimo Moss Balls​

Besides turning brown from too much or insufficient light, some marimo moss balls will occasionally float or lose their round shape. Floating occurs due to trapped air bubbles in the plant. To get them to sink again, give them a gentle squeeze to pop the air bubble. The marimo will sink to the bottom of the tank within a couple of days. Marimo can lose their round shape due to a lack of agitation in the water. Remember, it's the wave motion that keeps them round in their natural habitat. "They need to be swirled around in the bowl they are in to mimic that environment and keep them round," says Steinkopf. "It also helps them get light around the ball. If one side doesn't ever get any light, it will turn brown."