Need help with the sphagnum moss

[b.t.]

My question is not related to tropical pitcher plants, but rather, the live Moss that we grow them as a dressing with. I'm not sure which form to put it in since the Moss itself is not a carnivorous plant but, we all know it goes hand in hand with these plants. Over the past month I have watched as my Moss systematically has begun to die and turn brown. I have tried flushing the media each morning with water until water comes out from the bottom of the pot. Each night, I also spray distilled water on the Moss until water comes out from the bottom of the pot as well,. I think that it is sufficiently hydrated. I grow it in the shade under the benches. The relative humidity in Singapore is usually 80 to 90%. Maybe when it's windy it will drop to 60 or 70%. The temperature is like California in the summer. You think you folks could tell me what you think I am not doing correctly? I don't want to lose all of this Moss. It's very precious in Singapore and it's very difficult to get living specimens of it.





And now the current state:

 

[Fryster]

I don't know much about live moss either but JLAP knows a lot about growing it.

I'd say he is out resident expert on growing healthy moss.

 

[Clint]

Lol, well thanks but I wouldn't go that far lol.

Have you trimmed the moss? Whenever I trim it back too far that that happens.

 

[b.t.]

Nope i did not try to trim it. Perhaps however do you think i should trim the tips off now in an effort to save them lest they die off as well?

 

[dewyleaves]

How hot does it get in Singapore? I think that may be a problem growing the sphagnum. Sphagnum comes from the colder regions of the world and grow better in cooler temperatures. High temperatures seem to kill it or make it grow really slowly. I know during the summers here it gets hot and my sphagnum stops growing and dies out a little but will grow back during the winter when temperatures drop a little.

 

[Clint]

Aww I think that depends on the Sphagum. I've grown it in VERY hot lowland chambers as well as intermediate conditions and It was never bothered. There are several (maybe many?) species of Sphagnum and I think they all pretty much look the same to the novice.

My advice is get some Sphagnum native to the tropics. Don't take it from the wild unless you have permission from the property owner, but get it from another singaporean grower or a grower in another tropical country nearby.

 

[vraev]

I am growing newzealand sphag with my neps. They hated the high light that the vfts love....but with the neps... highland and lowland..the colour has improved and it grows like a weed. It almost overruns my ramispina.

started with this much live moss:

6 months later

The main thing I see for them is: shaded light, nice humidity so that it doesn't dry up and water. All three are required.

 

[Clint]

I'm gonna have to disagree that they need shade. High light = short compact moss. Lower light= fluffier moss. Don't worry about the moss when it comes to lighting, just do what your plants prefer (which in my opinion is more is almost always better ) In the wild you can see both forms of the same moss in full sun (short and compact) and in the shade (fluffy).


The same moss can grow just as well in either low or high light, it'll just look different.

 

[vraev]

aaah... well...I had moss BURNING up with tips becoming black and so on in the lights that my VFT's take. But there is another prob in that area = 30% or so humidity. I see that moss especially sphagnum loves the humidity. So I guess that is probably more important then.

 

[macamus3]

I got a bag of LFS from JLAP in the NASC auction earlier this year. It is growing like crazy for me and now have 4 times as much as he sent. I have it in all my terrariums both highland and lowland conditions. Does not seem to matter about temp as long as humidity is high- grows like crazy! Love the stuff. Pitchers seem to last much longer when surrounded by it. My N. medusa is growing like wildfire in it. Also have it outdoors on my VFT's in full sun and does not seem to matter- grows just as fast. Looks like it may be drying out or could be water? Don't know- never had a problem like in your pictures.

 

[b.t.]

I would like to ask all of you, how does your Moss respond to a drop in humidity? I noticed that I had a pot of this Moss in an airtight container trying to grow some drosera. The drosera died and so I threw it away and then I opened the pot. Now, most of the Moss in that pot also looks like these. With that set up, there was a large drop in humidity because the covered pot had a constant humidity of 100%. Once I opened it, the humidity dropped to 60%

These pots in the photographs however have never been covered up. They have always been left in the open but, when the weather is warmer, there might have been a sudden drop in the humidity from 70% to 50%. I don't know if I'm watching a process of dying that was initiated by a few afternoons of lower humidity. Have you ever had problems with Moss dying due to sudden changes in humidity levels? I certainly don't want to have to grow them in airtight containers forever but I'll try and find some way of keeping the humidity more constant if that is what has caused these to die down to this state and condition.

I mist the Moss twice a day in the morning and at night with distilled water. I don't know though, if during the day the lack of humidity was enough to completely dry it out and kill everything before my night spray.

 

[vraev]

okay. I am not sure about the drop in humidity but everyday the humidity in my nep enclousure fluctuates from 50 - 80.

I have found myself a method to propogate newzealand LFS.

I just put some live moss strands in a empty transparent CD spindle cover. I put some distilled water... the moss is submurged. I then put the thing inside a ziplock bag and closed it up. it is just then put under regular light under which I grow my plants. you can always see the humidity buildup inside with condensation.

That is it. It takes like 4 months to grow to a significant level though.

By vraev at 2007-04-14

 

[b.t.]

if you are doing that I would expext thre is a significant change of environment when you finally take it out of the bag. Unless, your growing conditions are almost 100% humidity as well. You experience a massive amount of dying off when you take it out of the bag and place it on the substrate surfaces to grow?

None of it dying going fro 100% humidty to 50-80% humidity is unlikely , in my opinion at least.

What amount of water is inside the spindle cover? Does it go halfway up or does it completely submerge the Moss underwater? What is the temperature like? And are you giving it a strong light or artificial light? I have noticed that when there is too much water, and there is too much light, the Moss tends to get infected by algae. The minute the algae sets in, it's game over. Everything will turn into a sickly green color, and then slowly everything will die. Eventually you will get a green slime all over the place, and six months later you might see one or two sprouts of fresh Moss struggling to grow and break free of that whole carpet of slime.

 

[vraev]

well.... I do notice that it looses some of its vigor when I take it out and put it with teh plants. However, the moss with the neps recovers amazingly fast...within less than a week and then..there si a nice light green colour and healhty looking moss which has now rooted into the surrounding LFS.

yeah...I don't think the massive dye off is the important issue. The important issue is the place where you put the moss after taking it out. ESPECIALLY, if you cut the moss randomly when you take it out. Since, sphagnum can grow as a long fiber, it is advisable to leave it like it. If cut, it has to kinda re-root and form its connection.

Hmm....When I start off the moss is completely submurged as I started off with very little of it: a handful. Then...it takes its own good time to slowly grow over.

I grow it under flouroscent lights. the same 4' fixture under which I grow my plants. Its kinda on the side though....its not the major contender for light.

 

[b.t.]

Thanks for the tip, I noticed that when you grow the Moss in an airtight container, it grows very tall quickly, and it is very skinny and scraggly. When you grow it in open air, the growth is much slower but it's much thicker and more luscious. I don't know if the closed container shields off the light and makes it grow skinny and quickly or whether it's the humidity that makes it happened that way. When you take it out do you lie it on its side since it's a long fiber? Does it produce more growing points along the stem or only continue growing from the top tip? I'm just asking this so that when I am going to try this I will know whether to cover up the middle sections of the stem with tips from other long fibers or whether I should just sparsely covered the surface of the soil with sparing amounts of this Moss because more growing points will develop along the different stems and former carpet eventually. I have yet to see this thing grow roots. When you say it is trying to root, does it actually produce roots for you? Or does it just use its leaf tips to try and stand up and face the light?

 

[vraev]

Hmm.....when I lay it out on the pots you mean ? or in the water?? In either way...yeah....it actually grows from various positions on the existing fiber. In either case, if you get any growth (new healthy growth), thats basically the major hurdle crossed. Now its just a matter of time, given the nice humidity and light..it just keeps going. But it took a while for me. I mean now my entire spindle case is empty with only a little amount. It will probably take like 6 months to get back to what it was. SO yeah..it is slow. However, interestingly..it grows a lot faster with the neps.

 

[Meaven]

man i love this stuff. i finally had some popping out of some cheap milled sphag i bough a long time ago and cultivated it out of a single sprout, now its everywhere and BEAUTIFUL. its crazy in my hamata pot, its overflowing the sides.

i've found that it grows well in just about any condition, but AIR CIRCULATION is vital. algae devastates it, makes it gross and dark green and eventually black.