Glass Jar Garden

Moss

Rough-stalked feather-moss as drawn in the simulator

Rough-stalked feather-moss

Brachythecium rutabulum

BeginnerFine in a closed jar

A glossy, fast, weedy mat on soil and logs.

What the simulation uses

Light
3,500 to 23,000 lux
The brightness it grows well in.
Humidity
60 to 100 % RH
Air moisture it is happy in; below the lower end it dries out.
Temperature
5 to 20 °C
Comfortable range; outside it growth slows.
Dies at
below -25 or above 42 °C
Days beyond these temperatures kill it.
Soil pH
5.5 to 7 pH
Soil acidity it prefers.
Grows up
0.04 cm/month
How fast it gains height in good conditions.
Spreads
0.4 cm/month
How fast its edge creeps outwards.
Thickens
6.5 %/month
How fast its cover fills in on its own ground.
Copes with wet
good
How well it stands soggy soil; poor means rot comes quickly.
Copes with still air
good
Sealed jars have still air; poor means grey mould finds it.
Copes with shade
fair
How well it holds on in dim light.
Copes with drying
fair
How well it survives the jar drying out.
Water use
0.04 ml/cm²/day
Water that evaporates off the cushion each day in room air.
Holds water
0.2 ml/cm²
Water a cm² of moss soaks up and keeps.
Grows on
soil, wood
Where it can take hold and spread. Moss that cannot grow on stone thins out there.

Care

Day length
10 to 14 h
Substrate
Moist

What kills it

Description

This is the moss that creeps into lawns and over old logs, and it loves rich soil. It grows best below about 18 °C and struggles once things pass 25 °C. Keep it moist and away from warm rooms.

Also called carpet moss, feather moss.

Estimated, where sources were thin: photoperiod_h; humidity_rh_pct.

Sources

Grow it in a jar