39 replies to this topic

[drtrmiller]

Indeed, that is very interesting. Maybe a venus flytrap for my 10 gallon foraging area is in order!

[dspdrew]

??? I've never heard of that being possible, due to seeds/spores present in the sphag? About how long before it begins to sprout? I'm going to try this right now!

Haha yeah. I had some carnivorous plants kept in saturated sphagnum moss, and after about a month went by, live moss started sprouting out. I then filled an entire tray with it, and pretty soon I had a whole garden of it growing. I've done this with other mosses I've found in the forest too.

[AntsAreUs]

That is the best way to spread mosses,liquify them and spread them. They spread by spores.

[Gregory2455]

I am going to try sometime.

[dspdrew]

This is what the Sphagnum moss looks like when it first starts to sprout.

 

 

 

 

This a little bit I put on a piece of wood I keep in a closed container. It's been growing for about a month now.

 

 

 

 

This used to be a container I kept a scorpion in that started growing moss. I had peat moss in here, a piece of bark, and a little water bowl with a sea sponge laying in it. It's mostly sealed so the humidity stays very high inside. Eventually moss started growing on the sea sponge because I kept it wet all the time. It you look closely, you can see (in the top left corner) where the water bowl is with the sea sponge sitting in it, all completely covered in moss now. As far as I know, peat moss is Sphagnum moss, but I don't think this is the same as what I get sprouting out of the Sphagnum moss. This moss never grows tall, it just creates a green carpet-like layer like I see a lot in the local mountains here.

 

 

 

[Foogoo]

Haha yeah. I had some carnivorous plants kept in saturated sphagnum moss, and after about a month went by, live moss started sprouting out. I then filled an entire tray with it, and pretty soon I had a whole garden of it growing. I've done this with other mosses I've found in the forest too.

 

Ditto (we have a lot of hobbies in common it seems). With your additional pictures, I realized I do have some sphagnum growing amongst my carnivorous plants and moss collections. I still have my container of sphag soaking on my windowsill to see what happens with it!

[dean_k]

This is what the Sphagnum moss looks like when it first starts to sprout.

 

 

 

This a little bit I put on a piece of wood I keep in a closed container. It's been growing for about a month now.

 

 

 

This used to be a container I kept a scorpion in that started growing moss. I had peat moss in here, a piece of bark, and a little water bowl with a sea sponge laying in it. It's mostly sealed so the humidity stays very high inside. Eventually moss started growing on the sea sponge because I kept it wet all the time. It you look closely, you can see (in the top left corner) where the water bowl is with the sea sponge sitting in it, all completely covered in moss now. As far as I know, peat moss is Sphagnum moss, but I don't think this is the same as what I get sprouting out of the Sphagnum moss. This moss never grows tall, it just creates a green carpet-like layer like I see a lot in the local mountains here.

 

...... You grow moss, armies of ants, other insects as well as fungus.

[dspdrew]

...... You grow moss, armies of ants, other insects as well as fungus.

Yup, and that's just some of it.

[drtrmiller]

To be fair, Drew, you have yours under a HID lamp, correct?

[dspdrew]

Nope. Just two 40 watt plant & aquarium bulbs (http://www.walmart.c...t-Bulb/16881017) from Walmart.

[Gregory2455]

I want to try the sphagnum moss. I have one question though- You said that it contains a natural fungicide? Is this dangerous to the ants too?

[dspdrew]

A fungicide dangerous to ants? I doubt it. If it had a natural pesticide, then I would be a little worried.

[Gregory2455]

So correct me if I am wrong, if I can start growing sphagnum like you, I can coat the cotton for test tubes of non attine colonies with it, and that would hold off fungus outbreaks?

[dspdrew]

Maybe. I really don't know. I just read that it's antifungal. You should try it.

 

 

Edit: Actually after reading what Wikipedia says about it, I really don't know if it would hurt ants or not.

 

Here's what Wikipedia says about Sphagnum moss:

 

"Sphagnum and the peat formed from it do not decay readily because of the phenolic compounds embedded in the moss's cell walls. In addition, bogs, like all wetlands, develop anaerobic soil conditions, which produces slower anaerobic decay rather than aerobic microbial action. Peat moss can also acidify its surroundings by taking up cations, such as calcium and magnesium, and releasing hydrogen ions."

 

"Since it is absorptive and extremely acidic, it inhibits growth of bacteria and fungi, so it is used for shipping seeds and live plants."

 

"The moss inhibits the growth of microbes and reduces the need for chlorine in swimming pools."

 

Wikipedia says this about phenolic compounds:

 

"Organisms that synthesize phenolic compounds do so in response to ecological pressures such as pathogen and insect attack, UV radiation and wounding."

 

"Some phenols are germicidal and are used in formulating disinfectants."

[dean_k]

I imagined ants with tiny bits of mosses on their back...

 

The birth of moss ants.

 

Well, a certain user on this forum has weird pink fungus growing, so mutated ant isn't too far fetched.

[Gregory2455]

Well, a certain user on this forum has weird pink fungus growing, so mutated ant isn't too far fetched.

You can give names you know. That user was me.

[antmaniac]

I am planning to make a tinny garden out of moss, which I found in the garden. The moss seems be quite harden even if it is super dry and sprout nicely when rain. It will be planted in the center of the mini formicarium, not sure how it will turn out.

 

[Vendayn]

I'm gonna try going some carpet moss. Not sure actual term, but it isn't like your pictures. Its just really dense, very soft (would make great carpet lol) and doesn't grow tall at all. I found some by the river, and its the really common moss I usually see in urban areas in Southern California.

 

I put it with my Pheidole megacephala, who like it wet anyway. We'll see how it goes. I'll take pictures tomorrow. I don't have a lid on them or anything, but guess I'm supposed to give it a bit of water once a day for a month, and then let it dry out a bit and then wet it again. The moss I got needs dry spells, since it tends to die I noticed if its constantly wet.

 

The ants seem to really like it, they are VERY attracted to it. Not really digging in it, just crawling all over it all excitedly. Not sure why that is. I did see a facebook video that said some moss can kill or sicken mites, and its great for keeping mites out of gardens. I have no idea if that is true, but in any case, my ants sure run around on it in an excited manner. I bet the moss has some kind of property that is making the ants more healthy or something, I dunno...don't know anything about oss lol.

[dspdrew]

The only way I've gotten moss to grow here in Southern California is with very high humidity.

[LC3]

The only way I've gotten moss to grow here in Southern California is with very high humidity.

Your room has high humidity. Start a moss farm.