# can pillow moss stay green in a vivarium all year?



## frogboy99 (Feb 1, 2016)

this is just a simple question? I was wondering if I put local pillow moss from my park, which is green in winter but goes dormant in summer, will it stay green in my vivarium all the time as it has proper moisture and light levels constantly? sorry for the noob question, I was just wondering is all.


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## serial hobbiest (Mar 5, 2017)

Pillow moss should be fine. Be extremely careful you don't introduce pests into your viv though. Mosses won't stand up to the usual plant disinfection procedures either. If you do anything that's actually capable of killing any encysted eggs that's in the moss, you've likely killed the moss as well.

Here's a 10 minute "how-to," & this guy seems to know his stuff.
Good luck.


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## kimcmich (Jan 17, 2016)

Greetings,

If by "pillow moss" you mean moss that looks like green velvet and grows in small clumps on bare patches in shady spots, I do not think this will grow well for you lone-term in your tank. These mosses need 1) very bright light - even the the shade of a park tree is likey brighter than your viv and 2) wet dry cycles to maintain their compact shape.

When exposed to viv conditions, pillow moss from temperate climates will either die slowly or begin to grow in a much more gangly fashion and lose its pillow shape. Serial hobbyist is also right that the moss can carry pests (snails and slugs top that list).

All that said, collected pillow moss will last from weeks to months before it declines and it looks very nice when you first set it up. I know from experience, however, that the intense green color and pleasing compact cushion-like form do not persist in a vivarium.


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