Moss

[Trellum]

I've always liked moss and the way it looks on surfaces. I was wondering if it would be too hard to grow it on different surfaces. I know moss are plants that develop from spores and not seeds, so... how could someone start growing some moss?? How can I get it?? Where should I go?? Is moss hard to propagate?

 

[Cjk85]

Moss grows around here like a weed, then most things do hehe.. I do know someone that cultivates different kinds of Moss for display purposes, she has a couple of yellow types of Moss too, they are really eye catching, I will find out and report back when I can.

 

[firelily99]

I've never grown moss but I have seen moss gardens that people have created and they are surprisingly pretty. So many varieties exist, I would imagine if you Google it that you would be able to find some places that sell it to gardeners. It does grow well where I live, its wild. When I did interior plantscaping we used to fertilize it but spraying it with beer laced with sugar - on sixteen ounce can and three or four sugar packets. Moss was very happy about it!

 

[claudine]

The moss in my flowerpots showed up by itself, I didn't plant it there. It's the same with my garden, moss grows everywhere.
If you want to grow it, go to a park, dig some and then plant it wherever you want I'm sure it will work

Here is a cute close-up on moss:

 

[Jewell]

There are hundreds of different varieties of moss. Some grow on rocks/pavers and some on soil. Your best bet is to collect moss from your area. Do you or your neighbors have any growing in your yards? Go on a scavenger hunt for wild moss patches.

I have picked moss out of the lawn, scraped it off pavers and placed it where I wanted it. Here is a photo where I had scooped up some moss and placed it between bricks. Some of it actually took and has softened the look of the bricks. In a few years maybe they will be covered.

Remember you will only succeed growing moss in a shady area that has enough natural moisture. Other plants like scotch or Irish moss that aren't really moss are best for sunny areas with less moisture. Mother of thousands, very fine leaved sedums, or thymes also work great as ground covers that mimic the look of moss.

This photo was taken last spring when the pear tree was blooming. The ivy hedge and pear tree shade the area and the moss has taken and is growing on the bricks and cement statues now.

 

[Trellum]

Gosh, you have done such a wonderful job!!! That tiny brick wall will look amazing in a couple of years, I'm sure That ivy hedge is a great touch as well, I've been thinking of getting one of those for my future garden. I had no idea moss growed so slowly! Thanks a lot for the useful piece of advice. I'll go on a hunt for wild moss in the future

Did you just rubbed it where you wanted it? Sorry if the question sounds silly, but I have no idea how delicate moss really is!

 

[Trellum]

The moss in my flowerpots showed up by itself, I didn't plant it there. It's the same with my garden, moss grows everywhere.
If you want to grow it, go to a park, dig some and then plant it wherever you want I'm sure it will work

Here is a cute close-up on moss:

Thanks, Claudine! In the place where I live moss doesn't grow at all, but I'll be moving to the Netherlands soon, so I might be moving into a garden with lots of moss already, but I'd really like to make it grow on my planters as well and maybe other structures, hehehe! I'm so excited!!!!

That picture is so beautiful!!!! I love to see macros of things I had no idea moss looked like that from close Technically speaking that shot is really good... so clear!!! I love the focus on the middle section.

 

[claudine]

I love it too. Ever since I was a child, I've always loved to look at moss from very close. I used to imagine that it's a billion of miniature trees growing together
I'm pretty sure that a garden or a park without moss seems empty I hope you'll have a lot of it in your garden in the Netherlands

 

[gata montes]

Even though moss has been used for centuries in Japanese gardens - I've noticed that it seems to gaining popularity once again - especially as there seems to be quite a trend in moss covered objects at the moment.

As you are hoping to grow it on different surfaces and are wondering how to do that - I too - know of moss being attached to various surfaces with a mixture of sugar, beer and sometimes even yoghurt, which is first blended and then painted onto the surface and sometimes depending on the finished wanted is actually mixed with the moss spores first.

Its amazing what can be done with Moss - so here are few ideas to inspire you - some Moss covered pots

Moss covered stones - which seem to be all the rage

A true Japanese Moss Garden

Japanese Planter

Japanese Show Garden at Chelsea in 2007

 

[Trellum]

WOW!!! Those pictures are amazing!!!!!!! I can't even pick my favorite, but that forest with that tiny path covered in moss is so pretty!!!! So it the last picture! Thanks for letting me know, I guess one could use one of those atomizer bottles to spread all that evenly? I read a post about that over here, I had no idea you could use beer as well tho. I will surely try in the future :

 

[Jewell]

Gosh, you have done such a wonderful job!!! That tiny brick wall will look amazing in a couple of years, I'm sure That ivy hedge is a great touch as well, I've been thinking of getting one of those for my future garden. I had no idea moss growed so slowly! Thanks a lot for the useful piece of advice. I'll go on a hunt for wild moss in the future

Did you just rubbed it where you wanted it? Sorry if the question sounds silly, but I have no idea how delicate moss really is!

I live in a temperate rainforest so moss tends to want to grow any way. I literally just scooped or scrape it off the ground or bricks and stick it in clumps where I want it to grow. With time it it takes off or "seeds itself". It likes an acid environment, so new cement blocks take a few years for the lime to get removed for it to grow on them. I read that you can collect moss, blend it up with yogurt and spread the mixture on the surface (pots, bricks, etc) and it will speed up the process. It usually rains so much here it didn't work that great for me, but it might be worth a try in a shady area.

I love my ivy hedges. It only takes about three years for one to grow just about any height. My ivy is covering up a cheap ugly wire fences from 3 feet (1 meter) to 6 feet tall.. The rule for ivy is first year it sleeps, second year it creeps and the third year it leaps. I cut the hedges back right to the fence once a year. It looks aweful for about two weeks until it releafs. The trimmings from the hedge get mulched/cut up with the old lawn mower. Makes the best weed free mulch ever for the garden beds.

 

[Trellum]

Thanks, Jewell, for all the useful information. Ivy hedges sound like a really nice way to decorate our garden and hide the things we don't like of it. I was a bit surprised when I read your ivy was actually covering wire fences, I couldn't even tell!! It looks amazing I'll really get some ivy in the future, I'd love to cover most of the walls, mostly the outside. It's good to know the ivy is a bit slow tho.

 

[Trellum]

I love it too. Ever since I was a child, I've always loved to look at moss from very close. I used to imagine that it's a billion of miniature trees growing together
I'm pretty sure that a garden or a park without moss seems empty I hope you'll have a lot of it in your garden in the Netherlands

Hehehe, what beautiful mental image, Claudine!!!! I guess moss is like a billion miniature trees growing for a small bacteria, for them it must be like a wild forest. I used to have an imagination like that as a kid. Great times Being a kid is always awesome!!
Yeah, me too, moss gives a lot personality to even the most dull places (aesthetically speaking of course)

 

[Trellum]

I've never grown moss but I have seen moss gardens that people have created and they are surprisingly pretty. So many varieties exist, I would imagine if you Google it that you would be able to find some places that sell it to gardeners. It does grow well where I live, its wild. When I did interior plantscaping we used to fertilize it but spraying it with beer laced with sugar - on sixteen ounce can and three or four sugar packets. Moss was very happy about it!

Hi Firelily! I was actually surprised to find out we can do so many different things with moss and place it almost anywhere we want. I heard you can get some wild moss by grabbing some from forests or parks, as easy as scraping it from brick or other moss-infested surfaces, hehe.

 

[Trellum]

Moss grows around here like a weed, then most things do hehe.. I do know someone that cultivates different kinds of Moss for display purposes, she has a couple of yellow types of Moss too, they are really eye catching, I will find out and report back when I can.

Australia, right? Over here we have a lot weeds growing everywhere, hehe! I heard in places like your country and New Zealand you even have calla lilies growing as if they were weeds It must be wonderful to have that kind of things growing wild. Please do I have never heard of yellow moss before!