# moss wont stay alive



## toadstoool (Feb 3, 2013)

fbt viv moss wont stay alive what am i doing wrong and how do i do it right


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## scoy (Jan 22, 2013)

it looks dry. moss can go dormant keep it moist and it should spring back to life


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## goof901 (Jan 9, 2012)

are you misting frequently? is the light bright? are you feeding dusted flies on it? all of these affect the growth of moss. I have pillow moss (yours appears to be the same) that is growing great on sphagnum, in a plastic container, with fairly high light. I do not mist at all whatsoever, but the humidity is at 100% because the container is sealed, and is filled with sphagnum.


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## Judy S (Aug 29, 2010)

and it may make a difference from where the moss originated...from outside where you live, or temperate in other words which requires a lengthy dormant period...or is it tropical... Regardless, the transplanting of moss usually results in some temporary die off...browning...and if you treat it kindly with moisture and light, will recuperate. Knowing where it came from will reveal what the expectations should be.


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## Dendro Dave (Aug 2, 2005)

Judy S said:


> and it may make a difference from where the moss originated...from outside where you live, or temperate in other words which requires a lengthy dormant period...or is it tropical... Regardless, the transplanting of moss usually results in some temporary die off...browning...and if you treat it kindly with moisture and light, will recuperate. Knowing where it came from will reveal what the expectations should be.


This is kinda a myth, while some temperate mosses do require a dormant period others don't...I've kicked snow to find moss growing underneath, and have taken moss from outside here in OK and had it survive years in a viv never going dormant. I've heard of people as far north as NY having moss from outside do well in a viv also.

Moss can be kinda tricky to get going... Different mosses like slightly different conditions...less/more moisture...less/more light etc...and do better on some substrates then others.

What I've found though is if you lay down a bed of good longfiber (the fluffy tan stuff...not the peatmoss dirt stuff) new zealand or chilean sphag moss and then lay your actual green moss over that almost all will do well if you have enough light. If they don't do well on a bed of sphag chances are they just aren't viv suitable. And while mosses are typically considered a low light/shade plant, many actually like quite a bit of light. I find 2-3 watts of lighting per gallon of tank is usually enough...more if the tank is really tall. So for a typical 30gal you will need 60+ watts of lighting to likely have much success with most mosses...and many other plants.

The op's viv does look a little dry. Mosses will typically go a darker green before they fade away if they aren't getting enough light and a bright yellowish green-full yellow usually means to much light...brown is typically lack of moisture. (this kinda holds true for other plants also)

Buying orchids and mounted plants that have moss growing on them is a good way to get mosses into your viv since often those are grown in viv like conditions or come from tropical areas....taking some from outdoors can be a risk but I've never had any issues.

You just want to try to find as many different types as you can. Typically several species will be growing together or in close proximity. Pillow type mosses especially tend to do better when planted in large chunks...they don't like to be broken up, while other types will tolerate it. I try to plant a mosaic of many types all around the viv and let each moss type figure out what areas it likes best. Often you'll get one kind that does better in the corners, another in the middle, and another that hangs out near the water more. 

Sadly a lot of the mosses viv/terrirum sellers sell are not really that suitable and often die off in a few months. Blackjungle's moss is ok, and t an c's was some of the best but they don't seem to be operating anymore. If your moss dies though...leave it and plant your new moss over it, it tends to end up being a good substrate for other mosses.


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## toadstoool (Feb 3, 2013)

the moss is fairly new bout five days ordered it online a place called new england herpetoculture it is pillow moss had the same thing happen before with the zoomed frog moss but i didnt look into it before i bought it and after i put it in died or from what i read that it was already dead but was suppose to come back to life but from reviews that stuff is a joke anyways and nobody has sucses with it also tried collecting my own it died as well i dont know maybe not moss in the viv is not my thing any more suggestions


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## Judy S (Aug 29, 2010)

patience, grasshopper...... make sure the contact with the substrate is good, moisten...light....and patience


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## Dendro Dave (Aug 2, 2005)

toadstoool said:


> the moss is fairly new bout five days ordered it online a place called new england herpetoculture it is pillow moss had the same thing happen before with the zoomed frog moss but i didnt look into it before i bought it and after i put it in died or from what i read that it was already dead but was suppose to come back to life but from reviews that stuff is a joke anyways and nobody has sucses with it also tried collecting my own it died as well i dont know maybe not moss in the viv is not my thing any more suggestions


Lay down 1/2 - 1in of sphagnum moss...plant the moss on top of that.

This stuff...


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## WeeNe858 (Sep 13, 2010)

Pillow moss takes a while to reanimate. Just provide high light and humidity with some air movement and be patient. I usually soak my pillow moss very well before I "plant" it.


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## toadstoool (Feb 3, 2013)

thanks guys going to try this whis me luck


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## JimO (May 14, 2010)

A lot of the moss that is sold dry does't rehydrate and continue growing. However, it's full of spores, which will grow over time. Actually, you would probably have some success if you took some of the moss and mixed it with a little clay powder and water. You can even put it in a blender. Then smear the mix (consistency of a fruit smoothy) all over your background or where you want it to grow. After a few months, it'll get established where the conditions are right.

I've moved patches of moss from one side of the viv to the other and had it die back before it started growing from spores. I think it acclimates to the micro-climate where it grows, so when you move it, the existing foliage doesn't like the new surroundings, but once it grows in from the spores, it seems to acclimate to the new conditions.


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## hypostatic (Apr 25, 2011)

I have ordered some of the NE herp pillow moss, and it's very nice looking stuff; the moss is green and live. I put half the bag in my viv, and the other half I left in a zip lock bag with some water by an east facing window. The moss that's been in the bag by the window seems pretty good -- it's a nice color and it looks pretty healthy. It's not thriving or growing/getting larger (at least not noticeably), but it's looking at least as good as when it arrived.

The portion that I've put in my viv has not shared the same fate (or any other moss that I've put in there for that matter haha). Over time it has turned brown and is slowly dying. I'll post some pictures later. I've put it directly onto my peat mix. Reading through the thread, I would guess that the reason for the moss not doing well is a combination of poor contact with the substrate, and over or under watering...


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## TDK (Oct 6, 2007)

I've never had much luck with pillow moss in any of my tanks and if you have a FBT (Fire Bellied Toads) your tank looks too dry to begin with. FBT like a more aquatic habitat and I would reccommend at least a 50/50 land water combination and use just Java Moss both in the water and on rocks/driftwood and toss the rest. The enviroment needs to be humid to support Java Moss. I went to the local PetCo and tried to convience the reptile keeper there that his enviroment of ground coco husk and a bowl of water wasn't a suitable environment for these frogs. The enviroment was too dry and the ground coco husk was sticking to the frogs--not a healthy, happy enviroment. Look on the computer under Paludarium and see some of the fantastic tanks people have set up.


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## TDK (Oct 6, 2007)

PM me your email and I'll send you a photo of a tank that I sent to a friend of mine that I said would make a great Fire Belly Toad tank. I've tried to copy and save it to my photos from my email but can't so I can't upload it to this site but can email it. It has a piece of driftwood that sets about 6" from the bottom of the tank on the left side and runs from left to right at about 30 degrees and water pours from the lower side and the whole tank is planted including the aquatic portion. If someone else wants this photo PM me your email and I'll send and maybe you can figure how to copy and post. TDK


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## goof901 (Jan 9, 2012)

I put one patch (?) of pillow moss in my viv, about three inches underneath the 18" 15 watt T-8 light bulb, and it's growing quite well. it's up above the substrate, away from where the flies are dumped, as the supplements will kill the moss


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## Morgan Freeman (Feb 26, 2009)

I find moss that is sold for aquatic use the easiest to grow, lots of moisture and lots of light essential.


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## Dendro Dave (Aug 2, 2005)

Morgan Freeman said:


> I find moss that is sold for aquatic use the easiest to grow, lots of moisture and lots of light essential.


Ya that is another source, since I think people have been able to grow aquatic mosses like Christmas and Taiwan moss terrestrially and that stuff can easily be found on aquabid.com


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## scoy (Jan 22, 2013)

is that ivy looking vine plastic. I saw something that looked identical to that at walmart in the arts and craft section


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## Morgan Freeman (Feb 26, 2009)

Dendro Dave said:


> Ya that is another source, since I think people have been able to grow aquatic mosses like Christmas and Taiwan moss terrestrially and that stuff can easily be found on aquabid.com


Java is also pretty easy but IMO not as attractive.


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## Dendro Dave (Aug 2, 2005)

Morgan Freeman said:


> Java is also pretty easy but IMO not as attractive.


Agreed....I had it in vivs for awhile, and it was ok...but just not pretty enough in my opinion. For years I've been talking about this super moss I have, that seems to actually be some type of micro liverwort, and releasing some into the hobby but sadly I let my vivs get over grown since most were empty of frogs and I lost a lot of this moss.

But I've cleared a few vivs out re seeded them with what I did have of this moss, and intend to take what grows in to seed some large containers just for growing this stuff so hopefully in 6 months or so I'll finally be able to make good on getting this stuff out into the hobby and hook up some people in my old PMs who wanted it. 

Here are a couple of pics...









Extreme close up of the structure as it begins to take hold on some sphagnum.









candm519 I think Is the only one I've seen post about having a similar moss/liverwort. Not sure how his has done over the years...been a long time since we discussed it.

My plan is to set up a large growing area so I can grow square feet of it and sell it  IMO it is better then both the blackjungle and t and c tropcial mosses that have been popular.


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## TDK (Oct 6, 2007)

This is moss that has grown voluntarily in my larger 3' long x 4' tall x 18" deep tank over a few years. The background is great stuff with peat moss on silicone. There is a drip bar above on a timer that comes on a 2 times per day and runs for about 5 minutes.


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## goof901 (Jan 9, 2012)

what kind of moss is that?? ^^^


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## TDK (Oct 6, 2007)

I really don't have a clue as the spores or a little piece of moss(es) probably hitched a ride on a plant or the piece of drift wood. My intentions were to cover the whole backgound with a vine but the moss prevailed and favorably.


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## Hansen2012 (Jan 14, 2013)

I have seen a lot of sprouts come up from the ABG mixes. I think the peat seems to have spores in it. :0. A lot of light and a lot of water is required for my sheet moss to grow.

-Peyton


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