Thanks, Canada Post !

[magnosis]

Word of advise:

Don't order plants from Singapore 24 hours after Canada Post has gone into strike    ( I hadn't realized this was going on until the day after. doh ! )

Ordered from: AqMagic.com
Shipped: June 28th.
Received: today  D:

I haven't opened the package yet. Will do that later tonight with my camera in hand.

What are the odds of finding any sign of life in there, you think ? 

[TLe041]

Both my plant orders from Aquatic Magic have gone to mush after spending about two weeks in the mail. Shipping perishable goods from overseas by regular mail is just not a viable option. They've been good with refunds, but I won't order plants from them again.

Also, be careful about importing plants from out of Canada. It's illegal and you could face a hefty fine if you get caught by customs. This particular retailer never properly declares what's in the parcel. They always put something like "fish supplies".

[JetJumper]

I have ordered some plants from Thailand before but they were not Aquatic plants.  28 days in a box with a damp Rag around the roots (No soil as thats illegal as well) and it surprisingly survived!  But I am sure Aquatic plants would not fair to well.

[magnosis]

Wow I am as much surprised as I am impressed.
All the plants are alive, after 34 days in the dark !

- The flame moss is doing amazingly well, almost like new  O.O
- The star moss is also looking good, the entire pad is a decent green
- The Plagiomnium affine is ok though about 50% of it has yellowed out or died
- The Fissidens splachnobryoides is.. meh.  Only about 15% left, and that little bit looks ok.

For tonight I simply poured 10ml of water in each bag, breathed some co2 in them and re-sealed. 

I took some pics, but can't find my cable to upload...

[morrom]

That is crazy, glad to hear that your plants managed more or less to make the overly long journey... 34 days in the dark one would think they would be all dead!
I would guess these plants are going into your new set up, we demand pics!

[Greatwhite]

WOW!!  First, I'm amazed that it took this long to get here since the strike has been over for a month...  But OBVIOUSLY I'm surprised that they survived that long in a box!  You may want to consider keeping them out of your aquarium - maybe grind them into tea and see if you can be made immortal by drinking it!

[magnosis]

grind them into tea and see if you can be made immortal by drinking it!

AHAHAHAHAAHA

the strike has been over for a month... 

I have a family member who works for Post Canada.  It's not only during the strike that things slowed down - they accumulated over 6 million parcels during the strike and it was an absolute nightmare to go through afterwards.  I think only last week they were able to get back to normal pace...

I think I was lucky in part because I ordered hardy moss....  Heck, my java moss tree has been completely dry with barely any lights at all (on a shelf 15ft away from my 55g, no other light in this room) and it's still alive after 2 years in this environment. Mosses are tough ;-)

The Flame moss and Fissidens will go in the tank soon, for the last few weeks of Dry Start; they should do well.

The Star Moss is useless, it won't survive submersed, as is the case for Plagiomnium.  I simply assumed - like a lot of people out there - that 100% of AqMagic's plants were aquatic... WRONG.  Bah! Live and learn, eh...

I will try and update my build thread tonight as soon as I can locate my !(@*! usb cable (thanks, dear 18mo son! eheh)

;-)

[dan2x38]

Get them in a setup with ferts ASAP or they will melt... be very careful with any roots left!

As a seller I've shipped plants in Canada. Once an order cam back the address given was wrong. I opened the box 5 days later they were fine. Resealed and shipped they got them in 2 more days so total 7 days none even wilted they were impressed with the order and quality.

[Greatwhite]

I have a family member who works for Post Canada.  It's not only during the strike that things slowed down - they accumulated over 6 million parcels during the strike and it was an absolute nightmare to go through afterwards.  I think only last week they were able to get back to normal pace...

I had read that there was sooo much accumulated mail in the system, and Canada Post was unwilling to pay overtime to get it processed, and of course, the employees were unwilling to work overtime for free.  Can't say I blame them, really. 

I had a parcel in the backlog that was sent from Texas June 13, and I got it only a few days after the strike ended. 

[magnosis]

Get them in a setup with ferts ASAP or they will melt...

The only option beside my 20g dry start is to pour water from my 59g into a bucket, and throw the plants in.  I'm not adding these new plants (from *someone, somewhere*) in an established tank....

Both the Flame moss and Fissidens are known to do well with a dry start.   Why shouldn't I just do this ?  I mean, they haven't all melted after 34 days in the dark, no air exchange, no ferts.  Why would they do any worst after I gave them CO2 and 10ml of (fertilized) water from my main tank, and light ?  It's pretty much the equivalent of a DSM, but in their own little baggie instead of in a tank... just gotta make sure I give them fresh air twice a day.... sounds right ? no ? please explain what I'm missing.

I'm not sure I understand the big rush to submerse them ASAP..... I'm not debating, just trying to understand ;-)


Also:  I ran out of [that blue liquid] used to clean up new plants.  Can't remember the name, it's been removed from the shelves a little while ago.

What should I use to clean these plants before adding them to an established and stocked tank ?
I'm afraid even a 20:1 water:chlorine solution will kill them.  It's happened to me before.  Works for hardy stem plants but kills anything remotely fragile.

[Laura]

I think you mean methelyne blue (sp?) which did get removed off the shelves a few years ago AFAIK.

I use a potassium permanganate solution on new plants, but it too can be hard on delicate plants.  Perhaps a milder solution with a shorter time in the solution?

[magnosis]

Thanks Laura ! Where can I find this ? Is it a household product ?

[magnosis]

A late update... I finally found my usb cable 

Here's some pictures taken immediately after opening the package.  Apologies for the lame shots.. stupid flash! >.<

Star Moss (garbage... not an aquatic plant)


Flame Moss:


Fissidens splachnobryoides:


Plagiomnium affine: (garbage... not an aquatic plant)

[pm]

Hey magnosis, I realize that it was Canada post and not Aquatic Magic that caused the delay, but I have a question about the flame moss.  Did you find the way Aquatic Magic shipped it and the quantity/quality to be acceptable for the price?

I have been thinking of ordering some but have been hesitant.

As a side note re: the star moss, I have seen their ads on ebay and it clearly shows the star moss under water in the pic (even has a CRS on it!!)... false ads suck!

[magnosis]

The flame moss was 9$ for a little smaller than a golf ball.  A little bit on the expensive side if you ask me, but I couldn't find it locally anyways.

Don't believe the pics you see.  What they do is grow it immersed, then throw it in a tank and shoot pictures.  I've read dozen upon dozen of forum posts from people claiming it doesn't survive long under water.  Do a quick search on plantedtank.net ...

[TLe041]

From what I've read on the internet, Aquaticmagic harvests all their mosses from the wild. They do not grow their own.

Since these are all harvested terrestrial mosses, once in the water they will definitely die back from the transition to submerged conditions.

[Laura]

sorry - just saw this thread and your question. I used Jungle Oxy Clear http://www.junglepond.com/sludge.htm

Not sure if it is just entirely PP, but it behaves like it, and references it as an ingredient and as a plant dip.
I got mine at BA Innes - it was $20 for 20oz powder a few years ago.