How to Grow A Moss Garden

For some people moss is something that they constantly do battle with, trying to keep it out of lawns and flower beds. For others, we love the deep emerald green of moss and encourage it's growth. Having a moss garden and cultivating it's growth will give you a whole new perspective of gardening.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Moss
• Shade
• Shade loving plants

1. 
   A MOSS LADEN TREE AND ROCKS

   Many people I know have spent years trying to keep the moss from growing in their lawns, spending countless hours and money on chemicals in the effort to kill it. But, it keeps coming back, doesn't it? Have you ever wondered why? It's because the soil is poor quality for growing grass but perfect for moss. In places where moss continues to grow, usually grass does not perform well, it will be yellowish in color and sparse in many areas. This is due in part because of the lack of sun, most grass varieties need lots of sun to grow and flourish.

2. 
   A PERFECT SHADE GARDEN

   If you have shady areas on your property where you constantly fight to control moss, give up the fight and encourage the growth of moss. Moss gardens are beautiful and can turn a dull, lifeless area into one of bright green, where you can introduce some of the wonderful shade loving plants that look so perfect along side of moss. Ferns go very well planted with moss, as well as hosta, periwinkle, lobelia along with countless others.

3. 
   A MOSS LAWN

   Many people have replaced their grass lawns with moss. It grows very well in areas where there is considerable rainfall, as well as under tree's where the typical grass seems to struggle. Besides looking great, moss lawns never have to be mowed, a benefit when considering how much carbon dioxide a lawn mower pumps into the air.

4. 
   MOSS WILL COMPLETELY COVER ROCKS

   Moss and rocks just seem to compliment each other; moss has the tendency to creep over rocks and into crevices where nothing else will grow. But if you can find a pocket where you can insert some soil, any flowering plant will look great and usually perform well. You can also cover up unsightly areas or items with moss, I once covered a whole pile of ugly pieces of concrete that had been dumped by a previous owner. The chunks of concrete were too heavy to move, so I started laying pieces of moss that had blown out of my Oak trees onto the concrete and in 2 years there wasn't any sight of the concrete left. I added lots of purple crocus bulbs and some long branches and made a wonderful little shade garden.....all out of a pile of concrete.

Tips & Warnings

• There are many, many different kinds of moss, you may know of Irish or Scotch moss, but you can purchase different varieties at online stores. If you have a wooded area on your property where moss grows, start to move some in a area near your home. You can begin to make a woodland garden where moss is the star, all you need is some shade and some light watering when the weather is hot and dry.

Resources

• MossAcres....Terrific Online Store
• How To Use Rocks in Your Landscape
• How To Make a Moss Tray
• Design a Culinary Herb Garden
• How To Decorate Your Garden

[jaredsgirl]

on 10/17/2009 Great article on growing a moss garden. Thanks for sharing! 5*

[npd65]

on 10/17/2009 This is so cool! I have moss growing all over my yard in the dark places, but I never thought of encouraging it to grow. It's time to start my own moss garden.

[vallain]

on 7/31/2009 Nice photo of your mossy concrete. I use moss gardening too with my woodsy area.

[arborwest]

on 6/10/2009 so is moss slippery ? You can't walk on it the way you walk on grass, correct ?
Great article.

[Mitestarossa]

on 5/18/2009 Beautiful I love both Irish and Scotch moss.