# Anyone used the buttermilk/moss method?



## Guest (Dec 20, 2004)

I'm curious if anyone has tried using the buttermilk/moss mixture in their setups, and if so, how well did it work?


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## Guest (Dec 21, 2004)

*d*

I have tried most of the recipe. I didnt have any buttermilk. I just shredded some really good moss with some water in it to the consistency of a thick milkshake and spread it on! I think buttermilk would have sped up the process in growing moss though. It took about 4 months or more to get moss to come up there, but then it came in well. Must keep it moist too! 

I'd start with your favorite moss, although its hard to thrash beautiful moss.


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## guyelcamino (Jan 22, 2005)

What is the buttermilk/moss process. I have never heard of it.


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## Dancing frogs (Feb 20, 2004)

...Havent tried it yet, but would really like to sometime, and try to make a background covered in moss.


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## kleinhanz (Oct 18, 2004)

> ...Havent tried it yet, but would really like to sometime, and try to make a background covered in moss.


better have a drip-wall or automated misting system


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## DaFrogMan (Oct 8, 2004)

I'm with guyelcamino, I've never heard of this. Would I be correct in assuming that it is a way of making a mossy mash to "seed" whatever you want moss to grow on?

Anyone have a good link about it?


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## TPopovich (May 7, 2004)

I have tried it and it worked pretty good. Below is the growth after about 1 month. I didn't put it on real heavy just incase it didn't work. Any how, I mixed a few handfuls of moss , a cup of buttermilk and a cup of water in a blender and shredded. Then I painted on with a brush.


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## Darks!de (Nov 16, 2004)

Hmmm...looks pretty good. What lighting and size tank do you have?

Luke


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## TPopovich (May 7, 2004)

This tank is a 45 Gallon hex with a 65 watt cf, the light is a" Lights of America" outdoor light. I bought it at Home Depot for $35. The background is Great Stuff covered with silicone and peat moss.


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## TPopovich (May 7, 2004)

The thing that worried me was it grew a white fuzzy mold over the first week or so, it went away over the next a couple days and about 2 weeks later it started to grow. I used a mix of pillow moss and sheet moss just to see what worked best. Both are growing but the sheet moss seems to cover better although the pillow moss takes a while longer to grow in.


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## Dancing frogs (Feb 20, 2004)

Looks great!


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## DaFrogMan (Oct 8, 2004)

Does it smell nasty for a while when it's fresh because of the butttermilk?


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## TPopovich (May 7, 2004)

No, I didn't notice any smell, then again, the tank sits just above my fruit fly cultures.


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## pa.walt (Feb 16, 2004)

*the mix*

the buttermilk mix came from people trying to give thier outdoor walls a look of age with moss growing on it. i saw an example of it on home & garden tv. 
they pretty much put some in a blender, moss and buttermilk. the stuff in buttermilk if i remember helps it to get started sort of a fertilizer. about the smell and fuzz i guess that is why it is used for the outside.
also they did say it took a bit for it to grow. 
walt


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## Guest (Mar 19, 2005)

*buttermilk moss*

i just took a big chunk of nice moss that popped up on a peat brick randomly and blended with buttermilk untill it reached a soupy consistancy and then spread it on reasonably thinly onto another two peat bricks in a vivarium. that was about three days ago, since then it grew a kindof hairy white mold which dissappeared when i sprayed the tank and now its got a really bright white mold growing on the surface, its not spreading throught the vi so im not worried but has anybody who has done this had a similair experience?


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## Guest (Mar 24, 2005)

now is live moss required for this? Could you use java? Id really like to try this...


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## Dancing frogs (Feb 20, 2004)

...depends on what you mean by "live".
If the moss is dried out (dead) but has viable spores, it could be used.
If for some reason the moss has been sterilized, the only way it would work is if it picked up spores from somewhere else.


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## Guest (Mar 24, 2005)

*moss*

today the mold is finally receeding due to a massive army of tiny white blobs on legs which walk around over the surface eating all the mold. they definately have legs and move so they are some kind of mite as opposed to another mold and they are eating the original mold which i suppose is a good thing.


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## Guest (Mar 25, 2005)

The mold growth is normal and won't eat anything--just enjoy the process of seeing cycles occur within the tank. It will subside and moss will eventually begin to 'sprout.'


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## Guest (Mar 25, 2005)

*mold*

the 'cycles' are actually very cool. the massive army of mites appeared in the space of about 6-7 hours whilst i was out the house and now its nearly all gone.


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## Guest (Apr 4, 2005)

Hello,

This is my first post. I've been absorbing all the info on this site for days now. I'm getting ready to move in a few months, so I'm trying to hold out on buying and setting up a vivarium. Anyway, I've had a lot of luck growing moss indoors on my fountain or on a windowsill planter. I've tried the buttermilk strategy and got the same white mold result. Beer does the same thing. Any rich carb source will work. I've found that the water left after boiling rice works best for mold-free moss growth. It might be due to the boiling step, or a more diluted mixture of carbs, but you might want to try it. I diluted the rice water 1:4 and misted it on my planter surface, then dusted it with dried and shredded moss, then gave it another misting. The most grows as long as there's enough light and moisture. I've had it growing for a few years now, feeding it with rice water about four times/year.
Justin


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## twisner (Jul 7, 2005)

can you use java moss for this method?


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## Darks!de (Nov 16, 2004)

Doubt it.


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## Dendro Dave (Aug 2, 2005)

the mold will go away, but you'll need to keep the tank humidity up for awhile till it does. basically it will cycle like an aquarium almost. dont put frogs in it till the mold goes away, and add some springtails if you can. The mold wont hurt the frogs but i have a tank that i didnt do this with and now everytime i try to seal it to maintain higher humidity the mold comes back and kills off most of my moss. The frogs eat all the little things that keep the mold in check, so since there isnt much in there to eat the mold and i havent let it "cycle" completely the mold comes back everytime.

i have 15 vivs and this is the only one that does this, so im probably gonna pull the frogs eventually, re seed with springtails and seal it up and let it do its thing till the mold goes bye bye. Once it "cycles" it seems pretty hard for the mold to take root again.


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