Planting DesignDiscover the right plants for your garden.
Photo by : Ippei Naoi / Getty Images .
Anyone who has happened upon a velveteened sign in the wood or glimpse emerald - draped statuary is probable to be seduce by moss ’ color - saturated opulence . But it is substantive for those hoping to lie a carpet in their own backyards or coax the spread of an existing mend to understand the quirks of this ancient plant .
Like many 400 - million - year - old , moss is particular about its environment . spook or semi - shade is unremarkably a necessity . So are a consistent source of ambient wet and open-eyed sustainment to keep it free of green goddess and junk ( because moss are nonvascular - no roots - they rely on their farewell for transportation of nutrient and wet ) . Experts suggest typeset down netting on top of moss in the fall and on a regular basis emptying it of fallen leaves .
Even so , “ a moss lawn requires far less upkeep than grass , ” read Andy Navage , director of gardening at theBloedel Reserve on Bainbridge Island in Washington . It ’s not bother by compacted soil , does n’t require pesticides , and is remarkably resilient when it get along to drouth and cold , go dormant when conditions are less favorable , and rehydrating when things improve . “ With a grass lawn you ’re looking at mowing once or twice a week , ” Navage sound out . “ But with a firmly established moss garden , you really only have to keep the majority of the leafage off and check that widow’s weeds do n’t encroach . ”
Photo by : Michael Kraus .
rock music jacket crown moss(Dicranum ) will prosper in deep tint . organ transplant it when leaves are already on the trees , as sun can quickly inflict harm . This plant life will maturate on top of rocks and boulders . Adopt it as a ground cover or else of grass for umbrageous areas .
pilus hood moss(Polytrichum commune ) prefers intermediate shade to partial sunlight , and sandy , acidulent grunge . If the grunge is sufficiently moist , it can tolerate almost full sun . This variety can handle light metrical foot dealings .
shock moss(Leucobryum glaucum ) favors nuance but can put up fond sun . Grow it in sandy rather than dense soils . The plant grows in clumps and appears a light immature with a silvery snowy mould .
Sheet moss(Hypnum ) , one of the most common type of moss , thrives in cryptic shade and has a great transplant succeeder charge per unit . Its impenetrable fleeceable mats can handle light foot traffic . utilise it between stepping stones or , because of its low ontogeny use , as a ground screening to highlight other low - array plants .
Grass can be hard to keep at Laurus nobilis , says moss ecologist Dr. Robin Kimmerer , author ofGathering Moss(Oregon State University Press ; 2003 ) . “ Unless the circumstance are sufficiently moist and shady , in a competitive situation between grass and moss , the gage is generally going to gain . ”
Moss gardens can be launch in three ways :
Though moss coveters have been known to irresponsibly harvest or take out up patches willy - nilly , says Nancy Church , a partner at Moss Acres , one of the nation ’s few provider of live moss , such practices pay for encroaching coinage and could return a particular species extinct in a given expanse .
Whichever method you opt , you could count on one matter : waiting . “ The most of import things to understand are the need for an established wet cycle … and patience , ” allege Church .
Read about the moss in Japan ’s gardens in AWorld Apartand learn more about civilise moss inA Moss Milkshake .
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