# mosses for dart frog tanks



## Frisian (Nov 29, 2011)

I have some dried Sphagnum from a bag (probably originally from some Canadian fen) and some non-Sphagnum moss, very green, from a western Lower Michigan forest. I am thinking of including both. Is there any reason I shouldn't?


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## dubvstudent (Apr 4, 2011)

The commercially available sphagnum should be fine. Alot of people use it.

The other is a different story. Depending on how it was gathered/treated it could introduce harmful parasites.


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## Frisian (Nov 29, 2011)

The non-Sphagnum moss was taken from a dune forest along Lake Michigan, far above the water level of a nearby wetland amphibians. I have kept in on a partly-ruined water tray (meant for a plant pot) for years right after collecting it. Would it carry parasites?


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

Frisian said:


> The non-Sphagnum moss was taken from a dune forest along Lake Michigan, far above the water level of a nearby wetland amphibians. I have kept in on a partly-ruined water tray (meant for a plant pot) for years right after collecting it. Would it carry parasites?


it is best to never ever use wild moss in vivs.
You can bring all kinds of bad news into your viv.
Unless treated but even then I have heard that things still get tracked in.

You can occasionally find DB members selling live tropical mosses or mosses that will suffice in the classifieds.
Here is a list of our sponsors and some of them sell mosses.
They are the ones(along with others) that keep this forum alive and going for everyone.
Dendroboard.com - Sponsors


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## james67 (Jun 28, 2008)

DragonSpirit1185 said:


> it is best to never ever use wild moss in vivs.
> You can bring all kinds of bad news into your viv.
> Besides the moss you got is temperate and requires a cold dormant period(winter) but in a tropical viv it won't get the dormant period it is use to.
> It's best to use tropical moss in vivs.
> ...


again with this?
dont you remember the last time you gave this bad info? i do:
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/plants/72152-what-moss.html
where do you think that all these mosses come from? 

wild moss is fine to use in vivs. it needs to be cleaned, just like every other plant you put into the viv. there are a number of ways people achieve this. 

james


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

Manuran sells the best Viv mosses you will ever buy as far as I'm concerned, and you can use all the popular aquarium mosses like Christmas, flame and java as long as it stays moist. Then there's also Riccia. There are a lot of options.


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

james67 said:


> again with this?
> dont you remember the last time you gave this bad info? i do:
> http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/plants/72152-what-moss.html
> where do you think that all these mosses come from?
> ...


edited my post. now you have nothing to gripe about


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

The dormant period is a MYTH in many cases. All the temperate mosses I've ever tried have had dormancy based on moisture availability NOT temperature


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

frogparty said:


> The dormant period is a MYTH in many cases. All the temperate mosses I've ever tried have had dormancy based on moisture availability NOT temperature


ah cool thanks for clearing that up for me and being mature about it 
I have been told that it needs dormancy a lot and have read that hear a lot and have been told that even by people selling it that it isn't good for viv use.


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

I think a bigger key to success with many temperate mosses is matching ph of the substrate. Moss from rocks rarely grows well on wood etc. Clay substrates may prove much more forgiving.


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## james67 (Jun 28, 2008)

another thing to note is that if we're being correct with our terminology, there isnt any moss collected in the continental US that would be considered "tropical" since those regions dont extend that far north. therefore ALL moss from the US would be either "subtropical" or "temperate"

james

edit: adding pic of tropical zones


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## flyingSquirrel (Aug 22, 2011)

james67 said:


> ...
> wild moss is fine to use in vivs. it needs to be cleaned, just like every other plant you put into the viv. there are a number of ways people achieve this.
> 
> james


James, I was recently contemplating using some moss from my yard (there are a variety of mosses for me to choose from), in my paludarium/viv, but I was reluctant for fear of contaminants, bugs, potentially even chytrid from local amphibians.

Do you have specific details on how to clean/disinfect/debug etc the moss from outside..i.e. your method or a link to some instructions? I am aware that a bleach dip is most likely out of the question (I bleached some orchids recently and the moss that was around their roots turned white and was fried)

thanks


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## james67 (Jun 28, 2008)

being that moss is a plant its fair to treat it like most other plants. bleach dips work (although discoloration can occur) as do multiple Co2 baths. its been suggested that it be scrubbed with soapy water as well. i prefer to use an alternative oxidizer to bleach which does not discolor the moss. KMnO4. (it should be noted that it is a STRONG oxidizer and that it is a dangerous substance to be handled with extreme caution) you can buy dilute mixtures under the trade name "permoxyn" online or through your local LFS.

james


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## frogparty (Dec 27, 2007)

Potassium permanganate huh? Makes sense. When I did fisheries we used to treat hatchery fish with it to kill bacterial gill infection and cold water disease.


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## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

About 8 months ago I got a bag of live sphagnum moss from ebay. I did a 5% bleach dip for 10 minutes. It turned it completely yellow but within a month, it came back beautifully, with lots of fresh green growth coming from all the tips.


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