Moss

The more I learn about moss the less I know, there’s many species and although I’ve made it a goal of mine to ID all the types I’m growing, I feel less sure than ever before on the exact types I have. But, I can provide some pretty basic instructions for caring for a variety of mosses, and add some suggestions for if yours seems to not be vibing with the most basic care.

🪴Care Most moss wants 2 things. A lot more light than most people assume, and a pretty consistent source of water. Each moss has an ideal amount of these two things that it’ll want based on where it grows is nature (some grow on rocks, others trees, some in dappled forest floors, others between sidewalk cracks). So a safe place to start would be first to think about where your moss came from and what that translates to indoors. Then adjust as needed. As far as nutrients goes, a terrarium blend of substrate should provide enough (especially ones that include worm castings), but many mosses aren’t extremely picky, so less is more If you’re unsure.

🔆Light If using a grow light I’d say a safe place to start would be around 400FC for most mosses. If you notice it getting more yellow or bright it may be receiving too much light. If it seems fine but maybe not growing much you could try to increase its lighting. The same goes for a window setting. Try an area that’s not going to get direct sunlight right away, maybe dappled light or indirect sun. Sheer curtains can help with that. Then increase or decrease lighting based on how it reacts.

💧Water Your safest option here is always going to be distilled. But if you want to try tap water let it sit out overnight and try just a small area and see how it reacts. Some mosses are much more sensitive than others. I typically have a layer of lava rock below my mosses and water that so there’s water below the moss at all times (not swamping or pooling, and the moss isn’t directly touching the water, rather sitting on top of the rocks that are touching the water). Then depending on what they’re living in I mist them. Many mosses will need water available from the top and bottom, so it’s important to not just water or not just mist. If your moss is in an enclosed contained you won’t have to mist as frequently, but do ensure some airflow to discourage mold. If your moss is out in the open you’re going to have to mist frequently for many varieties. This could even be multiple times a day if you have it in a low humidity setting.

🌡️Temperature This will depend on your species of moss, but room temp is safe for many of them, but up to 80ºF has been working for many of my varieties. Adjust as needed.

☁️Humidity With many mosses the higher the better here. No lower than 50%, 70-80% has been good for many of my mosses. But just like with any of the other areas, adjust as needed for your exact moss. If you’re getting crispy leave increase, if you’re getting mold and rot, decrease humidity and increase air flow.

💕Pairs Well With Terrarium plants! Pink Panther, Polkadot Plant, High humidity, and plants that like 400FC of light especially