Ricca is a popular flora due to its ability to hold bubbles of oxygen within its leaves when photosynthesising, giving the look of many beautiful pearls. Riccia in nature is a floating weed, it was made popular by Takashi Amano when he ingeniously thought of using it as a foreground plant by tying it down to a piece of rock with thread.
Since those many years ago, the aquascaping scene has been populated with Riccia filled aquascapes and from our experience, it is the flora that most impress our non-aquascaping friends.
Most of the Riccia used in aquascapes today are tied by thread or wire mesh to rocks or driftwood. The process is somewhat challenging for a newcomer and numerous practices are needed to bring about better results. As such, some of the more aquascaping-inclined local fish shops have made a tidy sum of profits selling ready tied Riccia to rocks or stainless steel wire mesh. Although the prices they charge are exorbitant, sales are still brisk as many local aquascapers do not wish to fuss over it.
With this Riccia base by Starpet, aquascapers that do not want to tie their own Riccia now have another option. With the Riccia base, all aquascapers have to do, is to place their Riccia within the caged base and clasp it close. Easy and straightforward.
The build quality of the Ricca base is very good. The metal mesh is of heavy quality metal and the base is of similar high quality plastic. Everything feels reassuringly solid and both parts clasp together nicely and smoothly. There is no flex in any of the parts.
Although Starpet’s Riccia base is still pricey in comparison to buying rocks and tying Riccia on it with thread, we would purchase this for a nano tank. Its ease of use and high quality components make it deserving for a try.
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