Different Mosses

[x5tr41ghtj4ck3t]

I found two mosses outside that I want to put into enclosures. One looks exactly like frog moss, and the other looks like Christmas moss (Like little tiny ferns covering a surface. Both were on top of rocks that were partially under water.

Are there downsides to incorporating two DIFFERENT mosses into an enclosure (such as appearance or functionality)?

[Tigratiggs]

I wish someone would have responded on this thread, you raise a perfect question for my situation.

[x5tr41ghtj4ck3t]

yeah... the issue is that there's a limited amount of people who are actually dedicated to the thread. If someone doesn't know the answer, you can't really blame them for not responding =/

[Bigfish1]

The worst thing that could happen is you bring in parisites or the moss has been exposed to some sort of chemical.

Now that we have that out of the way, my advice before you put moss that you found out side in to a tank with animals grow it in a grow out tank. Set up a small 5 or 10 galon, with lights and water, then keep the humidity up, wait a few.months and you should notice some growth.

I work out side alot and some.of my favorit house to work on have ceader shake roofs, in alberta and BC. with the right conditions, east faceing roof, some trees over hanging the roof and some organic matter. You should get some nice moss growth. Now I usualy grab some.of the.moss that is growing on these roofs and place them ceader and moss in to my viv. Usualy takes about a month to notice any real growth.

Now my second tip is do a little research on moss, its not actualy a plant, in the sense it.does not have.roots, it likes to have a moist enviroment, so keep the wood that its atached to or rock moist.
One more thing this is where most people go wrong, moss is a picky lighting type of creature. It likes a redder spectrum light. I have found that halogens are the.best to grow moss under. I know there are heat and power issues with halogens, but they seem to work for me.

[x5tr41ghtj4ck3t]

I used to go to Trinity Western University in BC! But of course, it was expensive, so now I'm back in NY. =/

Thanks! Prior to you posting this, I had the moss in my turtle tank just sitting on some wood with what I assume was inadequate lighting. The moss went from green to gold-ish, and then started to spore. I am taking Bio 105 now, and according to a lab we were doing, moss mostly reproduces asexually. However, when exposed to harsh environments, it will "spore" to mix up the genes and hopefully overcome the environment, which I thought was pretty neat.
So hooray for exposing moss to terrible conditions!

The moss I found came from under an enormous amount of shade, and everything in that area is still growing green. I don't quite understand why that is, but I can't argue with nature.
This. def helps, thanks; I'll post in a few months regarding what I discover =]

[m3177o]

To answer your question about mixing mosses, there isn't really any downside. You are definitely right about moss shooting spores to adapt to a new environment. They usually do this when going to submerged to emmersed or vise versa. Mixing moss is a great way to show contrast in your vivarium. So it does serve a form but no function.

I would definitely quarantine the moss first before introducing it in your tank. Just to remove hitchhikers.

[x5tr41ghtj4ck3t]

It makes me feel good to see people who reply with only 1 or 2 posts, because it makes me feel like he or she joined for the specific purpose of helping someone out and replying to a thread.<<<That's pretty much the exact thing I did a few months ago "Oh, I can answer that!" :: post post post:: =]

So, thanks m3177o! I was wondering if you knew anything about actually grounding them; Is there a way to make moss attach to wood, rocks, pebbles, or soil? Or does moss kinda just lightly sit there? Of course, I have months and months to wait on bothering trying that, but conversation is nice.

[m3177o]

I usually tie them using thread. I would put a thin layer of moss on the rock or driftwood or rock and tie it with the thread. Eventually the new growth will grow and cover up the thread. Another method is using super glue. Just make sure the surface is not too wet. Hope that helps.

[x5tr41ghtj4ck3t]

it does, thank you!
Strange that super glue doesn't harm the moss, eh?

[itsdajellyjam]

Originally Posted by Bigfish1

The worst thing that could happen is you bring in parisites or the moss has been exposed to some sort of chemical.


Now my second tip is do a little research on moss, its not actualy a plant, in the sense it.

Moss is what is known as a non-vascular plant. They do have a root structure but no vascular system like most terrestrial plants. The reason they needs so much moisture has more to do with osmotic pressure keeping the plant hydrated and firm. Not having a vascular system is also what makes them so short. Think of it as the first plant that crawled onto land from algae ancestors (who are microbes not plants).

I always stay away from outdoor plants for the same pest issues. I buy my moss in a hibernation state so comes with no soil or bugs. Mist them with water and they spring back to life in about 5 minutes.

Mixing species really won't do anything. They can't cross pollinate and one will not over run the other. Moss behave less like terrestrial plants and more like algae in that sense. Most ground covers will choke out terrestrial more than each other. Kind of like how you use wood chips to discourage weed growth (grass is a weed too). But most mosses do not like to neighbor right up against a plant. Too much competition for water, nutrients, and photons (light needed for cleaving water into molecules to make ATP and starch).