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02/06/2019 06:00 AMHere are five reasons to grown moss now, even in the dead of winter:
These plants have their own antifreeze. They can be transplanted during February and March as long as there’s no snow.
The same antifreeze that keeps moss going in winter also make moss taste bad. “Moles and voles may disturb a bed, but they don’t kill the plants,” says Martin.
Having no roots, moss doesn’t have to tap the soil for nutrients. It absorbs minerals from water through its cell walls. Goodbye, fertilizer. Not only does moss not need fertilizer, it can be damaged by it.
Moss doesn’t even need soil. When lifting a patch of moss, “It doesn’t matter if you keep soil with it,” says moss grower Annie Martin. She says a spatula is a good lifting tool. “Just make sure you pick out any weeds in the patch before you transplant.” She points out that some mosses are better than others at growing on rock or log surfaces, however.
Moss is ecologically wise. Most moss requires no mowing. As a result, there are no CO2 emissions, air pollution, or noise from gas and electric mowers. It takes only some light raking or seasonal leaf blowing, and about five minutes of watering per day in the hottest months of the year.