Java Moss Pros & Cons

[FishLover66]

Hi all. I just bought a few more plants for my tank, including a clump of java moss, but now that I have it, I'm not sure I want to use it..... I've seen some very cool looking aquascapes using java moss, and know that they are very hardy, but it seems so messy and smells like cooked spinach. Are they as messy as they look and do they require a lot of care? Was going to tie it to some driftwood branches and maybe a rock or two, but I don't want it to take over my tank. What are the pros and cons to this plant?

 

[Baccus]

The only cons I have found with Java moss is that as it grows and gets longer my cory's love rummaging through it where its tied to a wall and knocking heaps of it loose and then it gets wrapped around my filter intake. Other wise its a good plant which is growing well even without Co2 added to my tanks. Also it can collect muck but its easily enough to give it a swish when you do a water change. Also my shrimp love clambering all over it and finding bits of food in it.
I find the moss seems to ancher itself better to rocks and timber that it has naturally found over places where I have deliberately tied it.
Oh and I have found larva rock to be the best for it to grow on, I guess because its not smooth and the moss can find plenty of grab sites.
And last but not least if you have Bristle noses they seem to like having a munch on it and are just as good as the corys for knocking bits loose.