Q and A: Twigs in Moss

Fall is a great time to build a terrarium, to capture a bit of greenery in a bottle before things turn cold outside. My question for today comes from reader Kate:

Question: I bought some moss online. It's very healthy - I've just got it in a cookie sheet with some soil and pebbles, the whole affair sitting in a Ziploc bag that I can keep closed for humidity and then open it for awhile every day to get air. Now that I'm about to use it for a terrarium though, I see it has loads of (what look like) small brown decayed needles, and some tiny twigs. If I try to clean all that stuff out, I'm afraid that the entire sheet of moss will come apart (which I don't want to happen.) I'm thinking that all this detritus is decayed matter that's feeding the moss and keeping it healthy. Besides which, I'd never be able to pick it all out. So what do you think? Ok to just leave everything as is?

Answer: Your moss sounds healthy and well cared for! Storing it under plastic is a great method for quarantining your moss, to observe for insects or signs of mold. If the twigs and needles are in the dirt under the moss, wrapped up in the roots etc, it is probably fine to leave it there. It does sound like it is just part of the soil for your moss, and minimizing disruption of the moss while planting it in your terrarium will help it establish. Perhaps remove the larger pieces of twigs or pine needles if you do tear your moss into smaller pieces to place it in your terrarium.

Do you have a suggestion for dealing with twigs or pine needles in moss? Let's hear it in the comments?

Q and A: Can I Collect Moss in the Summer?

Whew, the heat is on here in Texas.  It is this type of heat that makes me want to dream of moss blanketing a cool forest floor. My question for today comes from reader Isabella:

Question: Can I collect the mosses in summer time from the forest?

Answer: I respond with a question again, does the moss you want to harvest look to be in peak health? If the moss in your area looks dry or dormant in the summer, you may want to skip collection until cooler months. You'll want to collect moss that is healthy, green, and thriving. In my experience, it can be challenging enough to transplant healthy moss harvested from the wild into a terrarium environment.  The moss receives a transplant shock from getting uprooted, it might dry out before you plant it, and it might be full of bugs or mold that might infest your terrarium (wash your moss!).  You may set yourself up for failure if you collect dry or dormant moss in summer months.

How to Make a Terrarium Last

I want to be honest with you about how long you can expect your terrarium to last and thrive.  Many blogs show fast and easy terrarium crafts in tiny glass vessels and bubbles, but they rarely show you what a tiny terrarium will look like after three months.  Probably dried out or moldy.  Tiny terrariums are cute if you think of them as a cut flower arrangement.  But part of the thrill of building terrariums is chasing the lasting terrarium, which sometimes means restarting, trying new combinations of plants, soil, and containers - until the ecosystem clicks and then plants thrive.  My longest-lasting terrarium was built in a wine jug and lasted about three years.  It looked a lot like the photo above from thedebrief.uk. Note the deep moss roots, and appearance of algae type stuff in the bottom layers of the soil. This is what a slice of the outdoors looks like under glass!

Secrets to a Long-Lasting Terrarium

1. Use a large enough glass container. A general equation seems to be, the larger the container, the better the chance the terrarium has to thrive.
2. Use an adequate amount of soil. If plants are to grow, they will need some space.
3. Use healthy plants and moss that have been inspected for insects and washed if needed. Select plants that have similar light and water requirements (e.g. woodsy ferns with moss, succulents with cacti.) See 19 of the most popular terrarium plants.
4. Keep up with terrarium maintenance! This includes managing water and temperature levels (e.g. water occasionally and don't leave it in full sun all day).  You might need to put a lid on your terrarium occasionally to help keep water in the system.  You might need to remove dead leaves or scrub the sides of the container of algae fuzz.
5. If all else fails, try again. Don't be afraid to restart your terrarium if mold takes over, plants die, or insects infest.  Shake it all out, scrub out the container with water and a bit of bleach, and try again when it is dry.  Fresh plants and soil!

How long has your healthiest terrarium lasted? 53 years?

Is Moss Magic?

Goblins' Gold (Photograph: Matt Goff)

Oh the attraction of simple moss.  A vibrant green patch, a soft carpet on the forest floor or alongside a creek.  Many terrarium builders seek moss for their projects as its diminutive scale suits terrarium life quite well.  But the world's fascination with moss runs much deeper than just crafting.  Moss has associations with magic, with fairies gardens, with damp and shady glens.  Botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer explores the abstract side of moss in her book Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses.  Her affection for common moss is apparent, but her scientific knowledge of bryology allows her to share stories of some of the world's most spectacular and unusual moss.  Kimmerer describes Schistostega pennata, known as Goblins’ Gold, a unique moss that subsists in a rare habitat where the undersides of rocks along a lake receive reflected light. 

"The shimmering presence of Schistostega is created entirely by the weft of nearly invisible threads crisscrossing the surface of the moist soil. It glows in the dark, or rather it glitters in the half light of places which scarcely feel the sun.... Rain on the outside, fire on the inside. I feel a kinship with this being whose cold light is so different from my own. It asks very little from the world and yet glitters in response."

Read more about this singular book at Brain Pickings.

Living Walls Create Landscapes Indoors

Photo: Ema Peter, Design: Gustavson
Wylie Architects, from The Globe and Mail

Green walls or living walls are an indoor gardener's largest scale project.  The idea of water seeping down walls might be enough to scare you off the idea, but if you are willing to put in a bit more money or effort, you too could arrange a vertical landscape in your dwelling. 

The multi-story living wall design at Lululemon Athletica in Canada contains over 2,000 individual plants, designed by Vancouver design firm Green over Grey.  Employees that work in the building cherish this bit of green to get them through long grey winters. “On one of those dark, rainy, typical Vancouver days … it feels refreshing to come in here” says Lululemon’s Karen O’Connor.  Large scale living walls such as this need a built in feeding and watering system behind the wall.

If built-in infrastructure sounds beyond your pocketbook, there are plenty of modular living plant arrangements that can be displayed on a wall.  Another Vancouver company, ByNature, offers its ModuloGreen living walls, which are soil-based and come with compact automatic irrigation systems.

Read more about compact living wall arrangements at The Globe and Mail.

Which to Use: Craft Moss or Living Moss?

Craft moss above, real moss below.
Photo by Janit Calvo,
The Mini Garden Guru

Moss is a central supply for many popular gardening crafts, including terrariums, fairy gardens, kokedama and more. When do you need to use living moss for your craft and when will craft moss work? The simple answer is: use living moss in projects with real soil and real plants, keep craft moss for "dry" projects, such as a short-term terrarium, a project with fake plants, or no soil.

Living moss is green and vibrant, with fibrous roots visible when you pull apart the pieces of moss. You might find living moss in your yard, the forest or at a garden supplier. You may choose to wash your moss of critters and rocks if you harvest it from your yard. Use living moss alongside other living plants, in displays you want to last and grow.  Examples are fairy gardens and terrariums with living plants. Note that living moss will not thrive in a succulent terrarium with sandy soil.  Moss prefers richer soil and humid conditions.

Craft moss is also known as preserved moss, reindeer moss, and any other dried thing that you might find in a plastic bag at a craft store. It has a brittle touch like a dried sponge, and may have artificial green color applied. It also sometimes appears in fluffy, cloud shaped tufts. Craft moss will not revive with water and soil, but is more likely to become musty and rotten over time. Craft moss is excellent for "one time use" terrarium projects, like wedding centerpieces or displays. Craft moss may also be used in a faux terrarium that contains artificial plants or no soil.

Sphagnum moss is a garden supply product, formed of the long fibrous strands of plant material.  It is often used or to line hanging wire baskets, or kokedama balls.  I also recommend using sphagnum moss to form a filter layer between your terrarium soil layer and gravel layer, to prevent soil mixing down into the bottom of your terrarium.  Sphagnum moss is not to be confused with peat moss, the short fibered, acidic mulch used as soil amendment in container gardening.

Read more about identifying the difference between real moss and craft moss at the Miniature Gardener.

Update: Marimo Moss Balls Make a Great Office Terrarium

My marino terrarium on my desk at work.

Several months ago I had the opportunity to do an unboxing of a marimo moss ball terrarium from EclecticZenMarimo.  Thanks to the excellent instructions that accompanied the marimo terrarium kit from EclecticZenMarimo, I knew just how to care for the terrarium from the start.

I am happy to say my marimo terrarium has happily thrived on my desk at work for these past few months.  The marimo terrarium is easy to care for - I just switch out the water with filtered tap water every week or so.  After a few months, one of the marimo moss balls got a little scuzzy - but I just followed the care instructions and and gently rinsed it off in running water.

The inside of the glass container has accumulated some calcium deposits on the glass, giving it a frosted appearance.  I have not tried scrubbing it out but I am sure it would clean up alright.

My coworkers love my marimo moss ball terrarium - it is a constant conversation piece.  I recommend considering a marimo moss ball terrarium if you are looking for an easy terrarium for your office or home.

Kickstart a Human-Sized Kokedama Forest

My fascination with kokedama has not extended into craft execution (yet) but my interest is renewed but this amazing kickstarter fund for a large scale kokedama installation. Kokedama master Coraleigh Parker for Pickled Whimsy aims to install this hanging bonsai forest at the Tauranga Garden and Art Festival 2014 in New Zealand. Judging by the photos of Pickled Whimsy's citrus tree and orchid kokedama, this project has a fighting chance!

Orchid Kokedama by Pickled Whimsy

Moss-Powered Future? Scientists Create Moss-powered Fuel Cells

Moss-lovers rejoice!  Someday you might be able to power some of your electronics through your favorite fuzzy green bryophyte.  That is designer Fabienne Felder's dream, and several scientists at the University of Cambridge agreed it is worth investigating.

Dr. Paolo Bombelli and plant scientist Ross Dennis have a previous project, using moss as photo microbial fuel cells to power a small lamp.

“On a small scale I think we could soon-ish convert people’s normal houseplants into little power-generators for charging phones,” says Felder. “On a large scale, especially outdoors, the right mix of plants will be crucial and that will need more research, both in terms of plants and irrigation systems, maintenance, etc.”

Read more at wired.com 

Moss-Filled Landscapes Worthy of a Terrarium

Waterfall in "Little Switzerland", Luxembourg. Photo by Kilian Schönberger

The aspect of terrarium crafting I find most appealing is the creation of a miniature dramatic landscape all by my own design.  I hear similar sentiments from other terrarium enthusiasts, who often enjoy including elements of the fantastic or macabre in their designs.

With that said, I imagine many terrarium enthusiasts would appreciate Kilian Schönberger's photography as much as I did.  Schönberger traveled to the further corners of Europe to document the landscapes that may have inspired the darker fairytales from the brothers Grimm.  His photos exude mood, despair, and moss; all key ingredients for a fantastic terrarium.  See more of Kilian Schönberger's photography from his series "Grimm Homeland" at wired.com.

Melbourne Terrarium and Mossarium Designers

The Sydney Morning Herald shares terrariums from three prominent terrarium developers in the Melbourne area.  Designers including Petite Green, Miniscapes and Bosky have given a 70s fad a very contemporary sensibility.  Click through to visit the websites of these terrarium designers and to explore a quick set of instructions for designing your own terrarium.

‘‘Each terrarium is its own little world within the jar,’’ says Melbourne’s Petite Green, who also makes mossariums - terrariums that contain mostly moss and small figurines.

Fern Fever: The Story of Pteridomania - Victorian Terrarium Craze

Bell jar style terrarium ad, from the
book "Fern Fever"

Collecting ferns and moss was quite the fashion for the Victorians, so much so that one might have called it an obsession.  Fern enthusiasts traded and promenaded their fantastical ferns, going as far as making treks out to the wild to collect rare specimens.  An over-enthusiastic, fern-seeker even tumbled to her death while reaching for an elusive cliff-dwelling specimen.

Sarah Whittingham traces this phenomenon in her glossy book "Fern Fever: The Story of Pteridomania."  Jam packed with lush photos of ferneries, fern grotto gardens, and decorative arts graced with fern fronds, she forms an overwhelming set of evidence for the Victorian fern fever, or pteridomania.

Interestingly enough, young women embraced fern fever the most avidly of all Victorians.  Much like the pop star-crazed tweens of today, Victorian teens were engrossed in trading fern specimen collector cards and begging their parents to install fern grottoes in their basements.  Even the daughter of novelist Charles Dickens developed mild pteriodomania.

An excerpt from the book:

The novelist Charles Dickens was sometimes irritated by his daughter Mary's lack of vigour and purpose in life.  In 1862 he wrote to a friend to whom Mary (then aged 24) had expressed a wish for some ferns to plant in their home: 

"After careful cross examining my daughter . . . I do NOT believe her to be worthy of the fernery . . . When I ask her where she would have the fernery and what she would do with it, the witness falters, turns pale, becomes confused, and says: 'Perhaps it would be better not to have it at all."

"Fern Fever: The Story of Pteridomania"
by Sarah Whittingham

Gosh, Dickens.  Maybe if you hadn't bullied your daughter over it you could have both enjoyed an entrancing fern grotto.  Of course the ferns did hold a sort of "fantastical" fascination for many Victorians.  Some enthusiasts connected ferns with faeries and fantasy, while others touted it as a healthy study of natural science and a great family activity to fern hunt in the countryside on a weekend.  Clever folks published lucrative fern field guides; stuffy folk formed formal fern societies and journals.

Incidentally, all these ferns necessitated all sorts of fern cases, aquariums, terrariums and other methods of constructing suitable environments for the precious and often costly fern specimens.  I share a few copies of the advertisements for Victorian fern cases from the book.

Marimo Moss Ball Terrariums from EclecticZenMarimo.com

Marimo Moss Ball Terrarium Kit from EclecticZenMarimo.com

Looking for a new kind of terrarium to test your skills?  I recently built a marimo ball terrarium from EclecticZenMarimo, whose kits are available on Etsy.  This was an easy terrarium to set up and would make a great gift for someone looking for an unusual aquarium or terrarium for their office or home. UPDATE: Act now and you can enter to win a Marimo terrarium of your own!  Just visit EclecticZenMarimo for your chance to win.

Drawing by Arni Einarsson,
Myvatn Research Station,  from Wikipedia

Marimo or marimo moss balls are aquatic, spherical masses of algae that float free in freshwater lakes.  Best know for their appearance in Lake Akan, marimo have achieved "national treasure" status in Japan.  Observers describe marimo as dancing or moving in aquariums, due to their ability to bob along in still water.  Marimo thrive in cold tap water and are thus well suited for a life in a small desktop aquarium.

How to Build a Marimo Terrarium

The EclecticZenMarimo kit contained gemstones, shells, a piece of seaweed, and two marimo balls

Marimo Terrarium Supplies

The basic marimo kit from EclecticZenMarimo included gemstones, shells, sand, a spherical bowl with feet, a piece of seaweed, and marimo balls!  The kit also includes instructions for how to build and maintain your marimo moss ball terrarium, as well as a stick and a small funnel.  This tiny funnel came in very handy, as you'll see in a minute.

Small funnel, ready for the sand.

The seaweed can bend for positioning
into the narrow opening of the bowl.

1. Add the sand, rocks and seaweed to the bowl

After rinsing out the bowl, use the funnel to pour in some sand and stones.  I used a piece of paper to funnel the sand into the small plastic funnel provided in the EclecticZenMarimo kit.

What if the seaweed is too big to fit?
The seaweed is flexible and can be slightly squeezed to position through the hole and into the sand in the bottom of the bowl.

What if the sand sticks to the sides of the bowl?
Don't worry if some sand sticks to the side of the bowl.  Once you pour in the water all the sand will be washed into the bottom of the bowl.

Simply pour water into the bowl
using the funnel.

2. Slowly pour water into the bowl

Pour cool tap water into the bowl very slowly.  Some of your sand and stones may get disrupted - simply use a stick or straw to reposition the items in the bottom of the bowl.

What about floating sand?
I noticed some sand floating at the top of the water after I added it to the bowl.  This sand will settle naturally over time, but if you want it looking tidy in a jiffy - I had luck gently tapping the floating sand with the stick.  The sand drifted down to the bottom of the bowl.

3.  Add the marimo balls to the bowl

Nothing fancy here- just pop your marimo moss balls into the water.  Marimo will need fresh water once a week.

I will post again soon with more news about how my marimo balls are adapting to office life!

Marimo happy in their new home.

Dream No Small Dreams: Terrarium-like Art

One of the most appealing elements of a terrarium is the freedom to allow you imagination to romp among a miniature landscape.  This tiny encapsulated world depends on your care and attention to thrive, and in return, becomes your own secret, if small, garden.

Artists Patrick Jacobs, Adrien Broom and Thomas Doyle tap into this human fascination with the minute in a series of miniature landscapes, some of which appear under glass much like a terrarium.  While these works don't incorporate living plants per se, the attraction is all terrarium.  The exhibit is on display as part of show titled "Dream No Small Dreams" at the Ronchini Gallery in London.

Art by Thomas Doyle

Interested in making your own faux terrarium?  Or see more of this exhibit at wired.com.

Desktop Aquarium for Office or Home

This self-contained "Flow Aquarium" from Biorb is petite enough for a desktop (under 15 inches square) and operates with a low power wattage (12 volts).  Just add your own living things and enjoy the view through structurally-sound acrylic sides.  Via uncrate.com.

Crafts for Kids: Kokedama or Hanging Moss Balls

Kokedama consist of moss formed around a the roots of a plant to create a hanging arrangement.  This hands-on process makes for a great project for kids.  Check out kidsactivitiesblog.com for a quick tutorial on this fun gardening project.

Q & A: How to Clean Preserved Moss in a Floral Arrangement

This question from reader Allison was a bit out of my realm of experience, but I was able to locate some helpful resources.

Question: "I am trying to find someone who can tell me the best way to clean dried moss or straw on a flower arrangement? I have a couple favorite flower arrangements from my mom who recently passed and I am worried they have "something" in them, How do you dust spaghnum moss or straw that is on the base of a silk plant?"

Answer:

1.  Use a scissor to remove any obviously moldy or mildewed pieces of moss or straw.  In my experience, mold is difficult to "slow down" so removal might be your best bet.  Perhaps you could clip out the worst pieces and replace them with new dried florist moss?

 

2. Attempt to dust the dried moss by blasting it with air.  You can try a compressed air duster (sold at office supply or computer stores - for cleaning computer keyboards).  If you use one of these they typically have a nozzle for pinpointing the blast.  Another suggestion I saw was to use a hair dryer on the cool or gentle level.  Be sure to wear protective eye gear!  You don't blow that stuff in your eyes!

3. Your arrangements sound very special and from a preservation standpoint, you may want to contact a professional for advice on how to best store and maintain them in future years.  A craft store or florist that works with dried flower arrangements may have ideas for how to spruce up the arrangements or treat them for continued preservation.

Here are some resources that might help:

E-how: Clean Dried Flowers

Yahoo Voices: Care and Storage of Dried Flowers

You Can Archive Herbarium Specimens Too!

Thank you to reader Shireen for sharing this awesome crowd-sourced project.  You may have caught my post about one institution's struggles to make herbarium specimen cards available to researchers.  SERNEC Herbarium is a digital archive project that relies on people like you and me to digitize nearly 30,000 U.S. specimen cards for public access.   It takes only a few minutes to type in the information you see on the specimen card, but the experience is one that transcends space and time.  My first specimen actually hailed from a state park about an hour away from where I grew up, and was cataloged by a female scientist in the 1960s.  Talk about cool.

Here is a screencap of the entry screen to give you an idea of how easy it is; just identify the label on the card and you'll be provided with a zoomed image.  The system will prompt you for fields like specimen name or name of the recorder and you just type in what you see!

Moss Monday: How to Water Kokedama or Moss Balls

Photo from fleurametz.com

Kokedama or moss balls are the newest gardening craze.  Simply form some moss and mesh into a ball around a plant rootball and hang from a string or rest in a dish for a globular garden.  But how do you water a kokedama arrangement?

Here is a kokedama watering tip from fleurametz.com, be sure to visit their site for more tips on how to build a kokedama or moss ball.

"If you want to water the plant, simply do this my submerging the ball of moss into a bucket that is filled with water. The ball of moss is saturated after all the bubbles disappeared. Give it a small squeeze to remove the excess water."

Grow Little Terrariums

Kali Vermès, a Paris-based artist maintains Grow Little, her terrarium business.  Read more at babble.com.