The best place to find moss to collect is in areas where it already should be removed. Some moss species are far more abundant in the human-made environment than they are in the wild.” Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses, by Robin Wall Kimmerer “A city offers mosses a multitude of habitats which may otherwise be quite uncommon in nature. Look for shady, damp corners and along cracks and other places water may flow. The first place to look is your own nearby outdoor space! Moss is found in moist, rainy environments much more frequently than its found in dry, exposed locations. Sheet or mood moss can be gathered in clean patches from mossy forests on rotations of five to ten years when less than half of the loose moss is removed each time and multiple patches with many capsules are left behind to reseed through spores or the regrowth of fragments.” Forest Moss – Nontimber Forest Products (NTFPs) from Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania State University, Cooperative Extension Collecting moss from your backyard “Forest moss can be sustainably gathered from rocks, logs, and the forest floor if great care is taken to ensure future harvests. You’ll spend some enjoyable time out in nature learning how to harvest sustainably from the forest. Collecting your own moss from a known area also means that you’ll have confidence that the moss hasn’t been sprayed with chemicals. But…you can also gather moss yourself! How to harvest moss yourself (instead of buying it)?įinding your own moss outdoors is a more affordable (and fun) option than buying live moss. Here’s more information about where to buy live moss if you’d like to go that route. Different types of live and preserved moss from Theresa’s Plants (Colorado).Bedford fern moss from Eileen on Etsy (Pennsylvania).Sustainably-harvested fern moss from Rainforest World (Washington).Live Appalachian moss from Tame The Spirit (Kentucky).Fresh moss is sometimes sold as “mood moss” cushions or flat sections of “sheet moss”. Look for sustainably-harvested fresh, live moss. Buying fresh living moss is a better option for projects like terrariums and kokedama. Preserved moss can also be difficult to work with because it’s so dry. Moss can be purchased at floral shops and even at dollar stores, but it’s often preserved with chemicals and is not harvested sustainably. Using live moss you’ve found in your crafts Buying moss: Look for high-quality living moss

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