I have some largish patches of moss in my front yard. I don't particularly want them where they are, although I don't feel any need to try to kill them, either.
I also have a small walkway to my mailbox made up of slate paving stones. I'd really like the moss to grow between the stones. Is it possible to move the moss from where it is, to where I want it to be? I was thinking maybe I could take "slices" of mossy soil and layer them between the pavers.
I have no idea what sort of moss it is, it's not cultivated. It just grows naturally in the few boggy spots in my yard.
Lots of folks advise moss + milk in a blender, then spraying it wherever you want the moss to grow. The milk serves as nutrient for the moss bits- as long as the conditions are right it will "take" amazingly well.
Moss likes it wet and shady. If the walkway to your mailbox has the right conditions the moss would already be there. It won't hurt to try to transplant some.
Well, the walkway was throughly covered with leaves until 2 days ago :). So, it's just bare dirt :). But, I appreciate the suggestion that it'll only grow there if the conditions are right.
I was going to plant (low-growing) thyme between the pavers, and then I read that thyme likes alkaline soil. Mine is acidic.
I'll try the moss in milk. Thanks to everyone for that suggestion.
May or may not work, depending on the species of moss you're sowing -- they're just as picky (or maybe more so!) than seed plants. If your front yard is nice and shady and moist, chances are that particular species isn't going to make it in a dry, sunny area. But give it a try... you really don't have much to lose in the experiment!
Keep an eye out for mosses growing in areas similar to your front walkway. Ask if you can collect some and try to transplant. You'll probably have more luck than trying just J. Random Moss From Elsewhere.
Results vary when attempting to move mats of moss from one place to another. More often than not it fails or results in an uneven patchy mess of half-dead moss, if you expected a pealed up mat of moss to re-"root" itself in a new location into a new medium. Moss does not actually have roots & doesn't like this kind if disruption. However, there's an easy & reliable method of getting moss to grow where you want it:
1) Select a moss with the appearance you're after, that is growing in a location with moisture & sun/shade conditions & medium preferances similar to the conditions where you want to have moss.
2) Chop the moss into itty bitty teensy weensy bits.
3) Mix the moss with water-diluted buttermilk.
4) Whiz this misture in a blender to the consistency of paint. (You can get a cheap blender from a thriftstore if you don't want to crud up your good one.)
5) With a paintbrush, paint this concoction of moss, water, & buttermilk onto stone surfaces or tree trunks, or dribble it onto soil between flagstones or wherever you want it to grow. For very large areas dilute the concoction a great deal & after having blended it to a much finer consistency, so that it can be sprayed from a pump-sprayer.
6) Use a mister rather than a hose to keep the area moist without washing away the moss-concoction before the rhizomes take hold & it begins to grow.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.