How to store sphagnum moss - a valuable raw material for flower growers

Tell me how to store sphagnum moss? I asked a friend to bring some for my violets, so she rewarded me with a whole large package. I used part of it, spread it out in pots, but half remained. I'll dry it a little, but I would also like to leave it alive. Maybe put it in the refrigerator?

Orchid lovers who breed them know about the benefits of sphagnum and always try to have it at home. But collecting or buying moss is still half the battle, because it is much more important to know how to store sphagnum moss, especially so that it stays alive. What is the secret of its popularity, where to get it and how can you use this culture in floriculture?

Sphagnum is also called peat or white moss.

Where does moss grow and how to collect it

Sphagnum is a representative of the Mossy group with high hygroscopic abilities. It is a perennial without a stem and without roots, consisting only of shoots collected in dense soft pillows. They are light green in color, unlike other members of the group, which have a brighter color.

As it grows, the lower part of the sphagnum twigs gradually dies off, forming peat. Moreover, they do not rot due to the content of substances with bactericidal properties in peat. This is how peat bogs appear.

Moss grows in damp areas, in a raised bog and swampy forest edges near water bodies. It is harvested by hand in the warm season, from late spring to early autumn. It is more convenient to choose areas closer to the trees, there sphagnum is not so watery. In order for it to recover, it should be harvested in rows no more than 30 cm wide. The same distance should be left in the aisles.

Collection can be done in two ways:

1. Gently pulling out the plants completely. This will make them longer, but more debris will get in, and you will need to clean it well.
2. Cutting off only the top. Such raw materials will be shorter, but almost pure.

How to store sphagnum moss

To prevent the raw materials from rotting at home, they can be dried by spreading them out in the sun. At the same time, not to crunch, but so that the stems remain slightly damp. Dry moss should be folded in paper bags and rolled tightly.

If it is necessary for the sphagnum to remain alive, it is either planted in a pallet with wet peat, or frozen.

The use of sphagnum in home floriculture

Both dried and fresh moss are a good helper for flower growers. For a garden-garden, it will not work very well, since the soil acidifies. But when growing indoor plants, it can work. It is good to root cuttings in moss and germinate seeds. If you wrap the branches of certain plants with it, they will quickly form roots on the air layers. Moss is spread over the soil surface in pots to retain moisture or added to substrate... In sphagnum, tubers of plants are well stored until the next season. And also pieces of moss can be laid out as drainage in hanging pots.

Storage of live sphagnum moss in buckets under the lid - video