# Dicranum, Hypnum and Leucobryum moss.



## Regalia (Feb 12, 2010)

Hey everyone,

Mossacres.com is selling a terrarium start up kit which includes a variety of three mosses: Rock Cap Moss (Dicranum), Sheet Moss (Hypnum) and Cushion Moss (Leucobryum). I was wondering how well this moss survives in frog-type terrariums. Does it need to be in the shade, do any of them spread easily, will they eventually die off?

They ship it to you in a dehydrated form and you need to somehow bring it back to life. I'm a total moss noob, can anyone chime in?

Any information from those of you who have experience with these in your vivs is much appreciated. 

Thanks,
Reg.

Bah, meant to post in the plant forum. Could a mod please move it, thanks.


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## GRIMM (Jan 18, 2010)

Im my experience I have never been able to bring dehydrated moss back to life. I'd be willing to bet that you would have better luck with the "moss milkshake" that they sell. This way, only the moss that is confortable in the vivarium environment will start to grow, and you wont be stuck with pillows of dead moss throughout your viv.

Maybe someone else has experience with products from this website.

On a side note...Why are you interested in this type of moss when there are numerous threads pointing out mosses that have been proven to do well in our tropical vivs? I think its good to try new things, but 40-80$ for a moss starter/sampler kit seems pretty steep. Especially when you can buy a large clump of java for 10-15$ enough to cover an entire 30 galon easily, and it is pretty much guaranteed to grow everywhere.

Edit: Just noticed the terraium kit is only 20$...I was looking in the wrong section.


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## Regalia (Feb 12, 2010)

I emailed them regarding the moss milkshake, I was told that there is some sort of jel in the product which helps retain water and that they cannot say that it's 100% terrarium safe (with live animals that is). 

I'm currently trying to convert some java moss to being fully terrestrial but it's not working out so well. Maybe I'm not keeping it wet enough, I don't know.

But yea, I was thinking for $20 it might not be such a bad idea to give it a try...

I know that moss taken from outside my home (in Montreal Canada) dies off after a few months. I'm not sure if its the same story with this stuff. Thanks for the reply though!


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## byubound (Sep 5, 2010)

Black Jungles live tropical moss is really good stuff. It comes in a sheet about a square foot. You just tear off a piece and toss it in. It sells out fast so get it quick!


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## Mitch (Jun 18, 2010)

byubound said:


> Black Jungles live tropical moss is really good stuff. It comes in a sheet about a square foot. You just tear off a piece and toss it in. It sells out fast so get it quick!


I just got some at the White Plains show today but have no tank to put it in. How long do you think it can live in the bag for? Sorry to hijack this thread


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## byubound (Sep 5, 2010)

I got some at the microcosm last week saturday and still have some in the bag, still looking pretty good. You could probably make it last longer if you mint it often. This stuff is really hardy.


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## Dendro Dave (Aug 2, 2005)

Regalia said:


> Hey everyone,
> 
> Mossacres.com is selling a terrarium start up kit which includes a variety of three mosses: Rock Cap Moss (Dicranum), Sheet Moss (Hypnum) and Cushion Moss (Leucobryum). I was wondering how well this moss survives in frog-type terrariums. Does it need to be in the shade, do any of them spread easily, will they eventually die off?
> 
> ...


These are all temperate mosses, but they MAY work...not all temperate mosses require a dormant period like many people think. They may be dehydrated but unlike those you'd find at a store this moss is usually freshly harvested and dehydrated, so it hasn't been sitting on a shelf for 6 months dehydrated waiting for someone to buy it which means its much more likely to come back. 

The black jungle moss is good but I've found it needs to be very wet and given fairly high light to do well for me, other wise at best it just survives and stays fairly dark green instead of growing/spreading and being bright green.
Its likely you'll need to try several mosses before you find a few that do well for you. I usually just get as many types as I can and throw them all together and let them fight it out in the viv. They tend to find the niches that best suit them. The more plants you buy the more likely you'll find useful mosses also...like buying mounted orchids/other plants and carnivorous plants...they often come with hitchhiker mosses that will do well in a viv. 

Check out this plant supplier thread, I labeled most of the sellers who have some type of moss...also utricularia make a good ground cover if they survive and often come with mosses. Dwarf baby tears is another good option along with riccia and may be easier for many people. 
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/feedback-questions/55466-can-plant-seller-list-sticky.html

Here is a link about ebay mosses...
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/plants/57104-florida-moss-being-offered-ebay-others.html

And an online book about mosses...
http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/plants/57009-moss-growers-handbook.html


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