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What's this moss at the bottom of my vft?

Is this sphagnum moss or do I need to get it out of the pot while I still can?
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And if it is sphagnum moss... how can I encourage it to spread so I can use it in other pots as well? Simply take care of the plant as usual and dig bits of it out when I have a bunch?

http://www.machineedge.com/digicam/moss.jpg

(Using a link instead of putting the pic in the post because it's rather big and people shouldn't have to download it every time they view the topic.
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Looks like sphagnum with maybe a little algae.

Joe
 
If you mean the "slimy" look to it in some places, I had just sprayed it good. I probably should have taken the picture before I did that.
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The moss is very very small, so water droplets are huge.

But thank you, glad to hear it's sphagnum. I've read that some mosses aren't safe for the plant.
 
No,no,no. Only some mosses are not safe, spaghnum moss is tottally harmless
to your plants!
 
Looks like a nice amount of sphagnum moss.
 
That looks like the moss springing up from the formerly dried LFS in my containers. Other moss I see in some of my post is thinner and taller. That I know has to be rooted out.
 
Sorry folks, I have to disagree, this looks too dense for sphagnum. If it has a dryish feel to it, it is not sphag. which if green and growing will feel wet to the touch. A websearch will show you what sphagnum looks like. Sphagnum forms characteristic "heads" which this moss doesn't have.
 
I agree that it is not Sphagnum. I wouldn't worry too much, unless it starts taking over. I have lots of different mosses that grow with my plants and haven't seen any negative effects.
 
Hey, ive seen this moss before. I had a look at the picture(I didnt see the picture before). This moss grows with my D.Admmirrabbillis(not sure how you spell it) Its tottally harmless. Shame you got rid of it, because it looks nice when it grows together with CPs. My pot with D.admirrabillis in is covered completely with this moss. The surface of the soil is completely green with the moss except for 2 D.admmirrabillisses in the middle.:;):
 
  • #10
I didn't get rid of it.

I guess I'll keep it around and see what happens. It might be easier to ID when it's bigger. Shame it isn't sphagnum if that's the case, but maybe my LFS will someday come back to life.

Thanks for the help everyone.
 
  • #11
It looks like some type of "carpet" moss to me. It won't bother large plants like mature VFTs, but it can crowd out out small seedlings and sundews.
 
  • #12
looks like whats growing in most of my pots. no big deal to large plants but it can over grow some pygmy Drosera. i "weed-eat" my pygmy pots every so often around the plants with a pair of tweezers. it looks nice covering the soil where the drosera arent growing. i dont have that many pygmy pots at the moment so its not really a hassle so i dont try to actually control its growth. it also likes to grow in some of my Utric pots, it doesnt seem to bother my livida but i would watch it with more delicate/slower growing species.

Rattler
 
  • #13
There are many similar species of mosses and you would need a expert to identify it. I know all of you refer to one certain type of moss as 'sphagnum' but there are many species of sphagnum, most similar to that one, others surprisingly distinct from the ones we are used to.
 
  • #14
For all of you Moss-O-Files, check this book out. More than you ever wanted to know and thats just the Great Lakes Area. This is a great book for explaining the stages of life and definition of wetland bogs, fens, etc. Plus the moss, oh the moss...

A Focus on Peatlands and Peat Mosses (Great Lakes Environment)
by Howard Alvin Crum, Sandra Planisek

Check it out.

Glenn


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  • #15
NONONONO! GET RID OF THIS AT ONCE! This form of moss chokes out other plants!!
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KILL KILL KILL!
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  • #16
Oh, thats strange, because ITS BEEN GROWING WITH MY VFT FOR NEARLY A YEAR, ITS HARMLESS!!!
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And its been growing with my sundew for a few month(the entire pot is covered) Its harmless!!!!!
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  • #17
Personally, I have not found it to be harmless, at least in regards to Drosera and Utricularia. Moss is also a good indicator that something isn't quite right in the mix: too high a mineral count which CP's hate. Thats where the real problems come from. I repot all my plants showing excessive moss annually just to be on the safe side. I have noticed that many Drosera species always perk up after the transplant, probably because I got rid of both the competition and minerals.

Moss ID is impossible without a lot of expertise and a microscope, but I can say that no sphagnum I have ever seen looks at all like the moss in the photo, and we have about 8 species in our bog.
 
  • #18
[b said:
Quote[/b] (Tamlin Dawnstar @ June 07 2004,4:42)]Personally, I have not found it to be harmless, at least in regards to Drosera and Utricularia.  Moss is also a good indicator that something isn't quite right in the mix: too high a mineral count which CP's hate.  Thats where the real problems come from.  I repot all my plants showing excessive moss annually just to be on the safe side.  I have noticed that many Drosera species always perk up after the transplant, probably because I got rid of both the competition and minerals.

Moss ID is impossible without a lot of expertise and a microscope, but I can say that no sphagnum I have ever seen looks at all like the moss in the photo, and we have about 8 species in our bog.
That's a good point. I bought these at Home Depot (they were just in and are in surprisingly good health... they had both Common and Dente, not that they knew the difference). The medium they're planted in appears to be entirely long fiber sphagnum. Could a high mineral count be found in such a medium? I can always replant them... but the LFS seemed to be working out as it was.

I guess the conclusion is that this isn't sphagnum, then. Ok, now to figure out if it's worth getting rid of.
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The moss was actually one of the reasons I bought the plant... hoping it was a good kind and I could make it spread.
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  • #19
Now that I look at it again, it kinda looks like Sellaginella or some kind of carpeting plant not moss.
I used to collect moss but its been a while now.
Tamlin is right, for moss to grow there must be an abundance of mineral and quite often highly acidic.

Joe
 
  • #20
endparenthesis,

LFS is a reliable medium if it hasn't been long watered with hard water (something garden centers are notorious for). If the plant is growing well, my inclination is to let it be. Even if it contradicts standard advice. There are so many considerations, it's hard to tell what variable may or may not be affecting the plants growth. My rule of thumb is if it ain't broke don't fix it, but be aware of potential problems, be observant, and act if it seems the plant is somehow declining in health.

I have this moss as well as about 30 others. As far as being a detriment in and of itself, it is fairly well behaved: a slower growing moss. The worst is a low flat growing long moss that is impossible to eradicate even going to bare root. It always returns around the base of the rosettes, making transplants mandatory twice a year, or else the plants will be buried.

My greatest success comes from using seasoned peat/sand that has sat in the rain for a season premixed in pots. These pots rarely get any moss growth.
 
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