sphagnum moss

Foolishronin

Anyone using sphagnum moss as substrate? I ran across a series of videos online & I was curious if anyone else had experience as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPVaAXgRoKk

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jfecme

Can't wait until we start getting some replies. Surely some of us have tried this. I did notice thathe is in Florida, and there may be some climatic reasons why this wouldn't work inother areas. Or, maybe work better?

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Foolishronin

I'm sure it would be a fun experiment, anyone else ready to dabble?

Mcspeed

Some things to think about are that it would be fairly acidic, it will hold quite a bit of moisture, and I don't think it would be able to stabilize a tree in a pot for a while( not a huge deal because you should wire the tree into the pot), it will compact making it harder for the tree to get oxygen.I use some in the mix for some of the more thirsty trees, and will use it for layering, but I think the Fla. connection is big. Graydon would be a good one to respond to this to see if he needs to have that much water retention due to heat, I am tinking not though.

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bisjoe

Yes, I have several bonsai, some 20 years in sphagnum moss. Do not pay much attention to that guy, he's left out a lot and his bonsai knowledge seems lacking to me.

I learned from the late Brian Batchelder, and still have his book. It can be found used at amazon or other places if you search. using sphagnum instead of soil requires daily (or more) watering, but many trees do better than in normal grit soil, especially if they like acidic soil or have a shortage of feeder roots when potted.

Oh, and Batchelder died from sporotrichosis, a disease that infects the lungs from inhalation of spores, and through the skin when the person handling it wet has an open cut. That guy on the video is asking for trouble, I always wear gloves now when handling it.

http://www.amazon.com/New-Horizons-...r/dp/B0019CEZMC

Mcspeed,

Yes, they stand up very well, because the roots are allowed to circle the pot. Root pruning is done with a saw. Air gets to the roots better than with grit because the moss retains moisture within it's cells, but water runs right through and out the bottom, so lots of air is drawn between the strands. Batchelder was in Florida too and developed this when traditional
methods often failed in his climate.

ficusfanatic

yeah, i recently saw those too. i had done some years ago with decent luck. that guy does leave alot out and needs some pruning tips too. i got some moss today to entice some aerial roots on a scheff. so i planted some mondo in a mound sticking out of a pot and potted a ficus in some sphagnum. as for standing up... not really a problem, just keep pushing wet moss in and around till its in there tight. i was actually going to make this same post today. when it comes time to repot however, i will not be sawing the bottom off!!!!!!! i am not fond of the circling roots he has. was going to post pics but my battery is dead....

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jfecme

Ficusfanatic,

I would be interested in hearing more about how you are developing aerial roots with sphagnum.

I've got a forest of Luseanne scheffs which I've had for years. I leave it outside here in Ga. from spring until mid-fall. It has developed some roots on some trees on its own, but I'd like more and in the right places.

Any help you can provide would be appreciated.

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Foolishronin

I'll let you know, I want to do a Bombay fig as an indoor bonsai, I was planning on a humidity tray & sphagnum media, still researching though...

bisjoe

It's been my experience that the sphagnum moss medium is best used for outdoor plants. It was developed initially for tropicals in Florida (outdoors).

Over the years I have done a few ficus that had to be inside with it, and ended up repotting in normal grits. The biggest problem is that the top of the sphagnum needs protection from drying out with a carpet of moss. The moss will not live indoors, browns out, then makes it harder for water to penetrate through the roots. Watering then has to be done by the dunking method and at least once a day. Aquarium gravel on top of the sphagnum might work, I only recently tried that instead of moss on one tree outside and so far so good.