Silence, I noticed your thread about Live Sphagnum moss

[gonewild]

Must be a different Lance.

I'm a different Lance, what was your question?

 

[gore42]

Persephone,

Lance Birk suggests using white pots because 1) clear pots let in too much light and promote algae growth, 2) dark pots don't let in enough light for the moss to grow.

I haven't tried growing anything in pure sphag, so I don't know this from experience, this is something that Lance explained to me or I read it in his book (more likely), I don't remember which.

I have found that fertilizer, at the very dilute amount that I use it, doesn't seem to kill the moss that I have growing on the tops of my pots, though.

As Ever,
Matthew Gore

 

[Persephone]

I see I'm going to have to purchase a few books!

 

[Lance Birk]

Persephone,

Matt gore answered correctly about white pots.

And, you will get an excellent education by reading books and orchid journals, especially some of the very old AOS Bulletins and any of the past Orchid Digest periodicals.

You can read some chapters of my own book by visiting- lancebirk.com, I suggest you read the chapter "Potting Media."

Good luck,

Lance Birk

 

[Eric Muehlbauer]

Although sphagnum has a reputation for harboring sporotrichosis, it also has the reputation of being good for treating wounds...this goes way back, apparently it was traditionally used in bandaging wounds, even in the US...my guess is that the acidic pH prevented bacteria from growing...of course, sporotrichosis is a different thing (a fungus, I believe?)..and I'm not so sure as to how seriously warnings should be taken about it....I'll wash my hands well after potting with sphagnum, but I'm not into the rubber glove thing....Take care, Eric

 

[terrestrial_man]

Bolero,
What kind of mix is your moss growing on top of??

Normally a healthy growth of moss will indicate a soil mix that has broken down or a very closed mix which could be bad for most epiphytic types of orchids. This does not include mosses on mounts or used as a topping on gravel or inert mixes.

 

[terrestrial_man]

Hey Lance Birk (didn't realize there are two Lances here!!)
are you still looking for sphagnum. I grow it.
I will mail you some but I need to know if you will be around to pick it up at your p.o. box
Can't do it until I hit town next week!

Eric,
Not rubber gloves but the latex ones-perfect thin and are not a hassle. Use them to keep the hands clean and dry!

 

[terrestrial_man]

Different Lance here....

I don't know much about moss but Belinda is growing some pretty nice moss in our seedlings. This is a paph compot planted in NZ sphagnum from a bale. It was potted up about 5 months ago. The moss is growing quite well now and gets a fertilizer solution several times daily intended for the paph seedlings.

So is this not Sphagnum? It certainly grows with fertilizer added to the water.

As to Lance's original comment about Sphagnum having a healing effect for plants, that certainly could be true as indegious people in Peru use Sphagnum type moss as a medicinal plant. I can't quite remember what the old fellow told me it was good for but he said it was a good plant to heal with.

Lance, gonewild
Did someone answer you on your moss. That is some good looking sphagnum moss!!!!!
Looks like fertilizing is not harming it. I think what it is is how often you water and just how much watering you do. such as drenching rather than sprinkling. ??

 

[terrestrial_man]

Here is a link to my experiences in growing sphagnum.
http://www.jsionline.freeservers.com/p1bog.html
Enjoy.

 

[Ernie]

Persephone,

Matt gore answered correctly about white pots.

And, you will get an excellent education by reading books and orchid journals, especially some of the very old AOS Bulletins and any of the past Orchid Digest periodicals.

You can read some chapters of my own book by visiting- lancebirk.com, I suggest you read the chapter "Potting Media."

Good luck,

Lance Birk

Persephone,

Lance's book is VERY insightful. A must read for slipper growers IMO. He treats cultural conditions as dynamic and interactive (with each other :wink: ) which few other authors stress. As far as the pictures in it, i've heard folks say they are poor, BUT he has pix in there of plants in/from their natural habitats, not awarded clones. Gives a better perspective of them. Great job Lance. My two fave orchid books are Lance's and Taylor's Guide to Orchids.

-Ernie

 

[NYEric]

I'm a different Lance, what was your question?

Oh, I was refering to the Phrags I purchased from Lange/Gonewild's online store. Don't mind me, I was just confused.

 

[gonewild]

Oh, I was refering to the Phrags I purchased from Lange/Gonewild's online store. Don't mind me, I was just confused.

That is me. I am the different Lance. Lance Birk started this thread and I tried to help you become unconfused.

 

[gonewild]

Lance, gonewild
Did someone answer you on your moss. That is some good looking sphagnum moss!!!!!
Looks like fertilizing is not harming it. I think what it is is how often you water and just how much watering you do. such as drenching rather than sprinkling. ??

The moss pots get fertilizer water sprinkled on with a micro wand two times per day. Enough water to wet the moss but not a drench. The fertilizer is MSU added to RO water at a rate of about 450-600 ppm total. Additionally several times per day the pots are misted with a micro mist with pure RO water. The moss does stay wet but not saturated.

Maybe it is certain salts in water that hampers the moss growth and not just "fertilizer" in general?

 

[terrestrial_man]

The moss pots get fertilizer water sprinkled on with a micro wand two times per day. Enough water to wet the moss but not a drench. The fertilizer is MSU added to RO water at a rate of about 450-600 ppm total. Additionally several times per day the pots are misted with a micro mist with pure RO water. The moss does stay wet but not saturated.

Maybe it is certain salts in water that hampers the moss growth and not just "fertilizer" in general?

Hello Lance Gonewild!
Sounds great what you are doing. What bothers the mosses is for salt accumulation that will burn the plants to death. But with the constant supply of water intermingled with applications of diluted fertilizer they are not impacted as long as the water drains through the pot.

Sphagnum needs to be wet. If you checked out my bog pages you will see that my moss is in a container from which there is no drainage at all. I may modify it when I start pulling out the sedges that have grown in the bog and insert a tube that I can pour water into and have it flood out over the lip of the tub. I spray the bog daily several times a day except like today when it is raining here.

Your method on the paph seedlings looks like a great system. Have you tried with phrag seedlings??

 

[gonewild]

Your method on the paph seedlings looks like a great system. Have you tried with phrag seedlings??

Yes, Phrag seedlings grow even better.

 

[smartie2000]

Interesting info Birk I hope to try live sphag one day

 

[likespaphs]

i've got several types of mosses i'm trying to grow...perhaps i've mentioned that. a while ago i read somewhere about cutting up moss into very small pieces and the moss will regenerate. i did that with one type, i don't think a sphagnum-type, about eight months ago and put the pieces into the water tray i keep filled for the some of the carnivorous plants. nothin' happened. a few months ago, i transfered one tray to a cooler growth chamber, that we just happen to have open right now and a few weeks ago, i noticed tiny green things floating on some weird goo that was in the tray. took a look at it today, and it's moss! little tiny moss!

 

[terrestrial_man]

i've got several types of mosses i'm trying to grow...perhaps i've mentioned that. a while ago i read somewhere about cutting up moss into very small pieces and the moss will regenerate. i did that with one type, i don't think a sphagnum-type, about eight months ago and put the pieces into the water tray i keep filled for the some of the carnivorous plants. nothin' happened. a few months ago, i transfered one tray to a cooler growth chamber, that we just happen to have open right now and a few weeks ago, i noticed tiny green things floating on some weird goo that was in the tray. took a look at it today, and it's moss! little tiny moss!

What types of mosses are you trying to grow?
Got any images?
How is this surprise little moss doing?

 

[likespaphs]

surprise little moss is doing well. just on my way out for the day, so no photos today. if i remember, maybe tomorrow or over the weekend....
most of the moss is just random stuff that started to grow on the sphag and peat in which i have my carnivorous stuff planted. some is some live sphag a guy in the new england carnivorous plant society gave me...

 

[likespaphs]

tried to take some photos, they came out very poorly, so, no photos....