Like lush emerald — or sometimes even citron — throw rugs or afghans, moss covers fallen trees and the forest floor in vibrant patches. It drapes over stream-bound boulders like a velvet cloak and fills cracks in sidewalks better than any man-made caulk. It makes excellent terrarium filler. It feels amazing under bare feet.
But what is moss?
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Having been around for millions of years, despite its appearance, moss is neither lichen nor fungus. It is, instead, a bryophyte. Nonflowering, in order to reproduce, bryophytes produce spores. Bryophytes have stems and leaves of a sort, but no true roots.
Hair-like structures called rhizoids, while they don’t penetrate down into the soil the way roots do, attach the moss to various surfaces such as soil, bark or rock. Rhizoids also help mosses conduct and retain water as well as nutrients.
As children, we love the magic of moss. It offers all the sensory input even the most imaginative child craves: vibrant colors, velvety texture, lush carpet and pillows.
Say the word “moss,” and everyone knows exactly what plant you’re talking about. Mosses live on every continent, even Antarctica. It can take extremes of conditions, from snowy mountaintops to deserts. Moss can be found growing on trees, on walls, and it’s the perfect plant for green roofs. Because it can subsist on much less soil and nutrients than most other plants, weight isn’t as much of a concern when using moss for “green” roofs.
Moss can tolerate temps from subzero to extremely hot. Mosses produce their own antifreeze so they actually thrive in cold conditions. Too much heat and they just dry out, hunker down, and wait for enough moisture to revive them.
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There are more than 12,000 species of moss, each one uniquely adapted to its living conditions. Because it grows pretty much everywhere, humans have utilized mosses for untold centuries for a variety of reasons.
Green roofs, generally consisting of a waterproof layer covered in soil and plants, are not new, just an old idea that’s come back around. Pretty much waterproof itself, once moss tags down, it makes a great roof covering. It’s also a form of insulation.
Dried moss can be used as diapers, or feminine hygiene products. It makes great tinder. Moss can be used to soften bedding areas, or to line boots.
Able to absorb 20 times its weight in water, moss also has antibacterial properties and has long been used for bandages or wound dressings.
Moss, mixed with mud or clay, is useful as chinking between logs in cabins or stone buildings.
Part of moss’ contribution to ecosystems includes helping with erosion and retaining moisture. Green roofs can prevent up to 65% of stormwater runoff.
Moss is a food source, as well as a habitat or spawning ground for many types of amphibians. Birds use moss to “feather their nests.”
Mosses recycle nutrients and provide seed beds for seedlings. By absorbing excess moisture, they create a better environment for the plants and trees around them.
A closeup look at moss is like looking at a miniature rain forest. In a manner similar to rain forests, moss is a bio-indicator of the health of the environment, going so far as to change shape and density or disappear entirely if conditions get too bad.
Among the first plants to reestablish an ecosystem after a disaster such as a wildfire or volcanic eruption, mosses help stabilize the soil. The way they hold moisture and retain nutrients encourages and enables other plant species to come back as well. The act of holding moisture allows mosses to also control humidity, and sometimes temperature as well.
Moss can keep the ground cooler in shady forests, or it can have the reverse effect. Sphagnum moss reflects sunlight, so it keeps the tundra cooler and helps prevent the permafrost from melting.
Moss tends to grow in shady areas with moist, slightly acidic soil. While many people loathe moss, lumping it in the same category as dandelions, it’s a great choice for a damp, shady area of your lawn. And it doesn’t need mowing!
Nearly impossible to eradicate, moss can be deterred by tilling and liming the soil. But, if moss is growing in a certain part of your yard, then conditions are exactly right for it to thrive, which means most sun-loving grasses likely won’t survive in that area anyway.
If you love moss, and want to encourage it to grow, there are several ways it can be accomplished. Moss is a creeper, not a leaper, so keep in mind it’s kind of slow growing. Optimal conditions will encourage faster growth, so keep it moist.
Moss often grows in clumps or in a sheet-like manner, so you can carefully lift the edges and peel some up — make sure it’s on your property or if not, get permission — and transfer your gleanings to the area where you’re trying to establish it.
Another way to encourage moss to grow, especially if you’re trying to get it to grow on rocks or brickwork — an anathema to moss haters — you can make a slurry and pour or paint the mixture on. In a blender, mix about 1 to 1.5 cups of chopped moss and 2 cups of buttermilk or plain yogurt, something to encourage the growth of spores. Let the mixture sit a couple days, and then spread that moss — literally!
Moss on a living tree usually won’t do the tree any harm. Maybe you’ve noticed moss growing up the trunk of a live oak or on thick live oak branches, covered with feathery tufts of resurrection fern (Pleopeltis polypodioides) like hair on a troll doll. By retaining moisture, moss helps fallen trees decay faster and become nurse logs, home to endless fungi and insects, which in turn feed larger critters. Upon returning completely to the soil, these logs may eventually only be marked by a bed of moss. Moss that gives new seedlings a perfect nursery in which to grow and thrive, perpetuating a new generation of forest.
