Along the mossy path

Flower & Garden Magazine, Dec, 1996 by Molly Dean

Here are cool mosses deep, And thro' the moss the ivies creep, And in the stream the long-leaved flowers weep, And from the craggy ledge the poppy hangs in sleep.

"The Lotus Eaters," Choric Song, Part 1

Alfred Lord Tennyson

Poets Have Described Moss As being "cool and green" and "ancient." Even so, most people take mosses for granted. To some, mosses are merely pests of lawns, indicators of poor drainage and excessive soil acidity. To others, mosses are but a single unimportant element, contributing to the overall effect of a garden. Yet there are those who hold mosses in high horticultural esteem. The Japanese, for instance, painstakingly cultivate mosses in their simplistic, elegant gardens, drawing from a vast number of species.

For my own part, I always associate mosses with the image of a path, perhaps because of the steppingstone track that once meandered along a shaded, mossy section of my grandmother's yard. As a child, I liked to hop from stone to stone on this path and imagine that it led to an enchanted castle or a secluded walled garden, instead of the old, bent dogwood to which it actually led.

However mosses are perceived, they are an undeniably interesting group of plants in their own right. I was surprised to learn that there are more than 9,000 species -- 1,200 in North America alone. Mosses, as a group, are durable, able to withstand heat or cold. They grow at a very slow rate and last a long time. Some mosses in Japan are known to be hundreds of years old. How strange to think that the life span of such a small, everyday plant can be longer than our own.

All mosses are composed of many tiny and closely packed leaves and stems. One of the most common types is the granite moss many of us have seen growing in dense mats upon rocks. Other notable types include hairy cap moss, made up of pale stars on a bed of green and forming lush tufts upon soil in moist, shady conditions, and stair step moss, spreading into velvety green carpets over large areas of soil. Sphagnum or peat moss, which is found in marshes or bogs, is often used to amend soil or help young plants to stay moist.

Like ferns, mosses grow from spores. No true moss produces either seeds or flowers. Most mosses prefer damp, shady sites, though there are some types that surprisingly tolerate dry conditions. "Look for moss on the north side of a tree," says an old adage that is generally -- but not always -- true.

Mosses can be used as an easily maintained groundcover in certain types of gardens, such as the previously mentioned Japanese-style garden or a naturalized woodland or shade garden. The use of mosses can produce lovely effects, such as the sheathing of an old tree trunk or fallen log. Moss can also peek between the cracks of a rosy brick patio or creep down an old stone wall, for that matter. When my mother recently mentioned to a landscaper that she wanted to scrape away the moss from the bricks surrounding her flower border, he told her that "rich matrons from Buckhead" -- an exclusive section of Atlanta -- prefer to buy mossy bricks, which they say add more "prestige" to new gardens.

Climatic conditions play an important part, of course. In Japan, humidity usually prevails. In this country, though, conditions are often drier, and mosses cultivated for gardens must often receive frequent watering or misting. For that reason, gardeners often turn to the less demanding Irish moss (Arenaria verna), which is not a true moss but gives the same lovely green carpeting effect.

Probably of more interest to gardeners in this country is the use of mosses in decorating. Mosses, along with other natural materials, such as pinecones, acorns, lichens, dried flowers or berries, can be used to enhance many objects. Ordinary clay pots can be turned into fanciful, naturalistic plant containers by attaching moss to the inside and outside and simply tying with raffia, creating the perfect indoor home for a woodland fern or delicate shamrock.

A friend of mine has the interesting hobby of creating "fairy houses" with fairy furniture; she sets the diminutive tables and chairs on fuzzy green carpets of moss. My husband builds ornamental bird houses, to which I often lend a hand in decorating. These are usually log cabins or chalets nestled on mossy "hills" (actually wood and Styrofoam bases completely covered with moss). Moss also "grows" in patches on the small shingled roofs and encircles tree branch chimneys with curly grape tendril smoke. Moss can also form an important part of a wreath base, along with dried herbs, lichens or tree bark.

However mosses are to be used, they can be collected directly from the wild -- with the property owner's permission, of course. Some of the most easily obtainable clumps are found not on the ground but creeping along fallen trees or sheathing the sides of rocks. Lift these by sliding a knife blade or spatula underneath the matted growth and carefully raising it. Then you can store the clumps in containers large enough to hold them flat. If you would like to transplant these to a garden, keep them covered with a damp newspaper until you can plant them. There's no need to move large sheets of moss; even tiny sprigs will take hold in moist, acid soil and spread to carpet the ground.