{"id":864,"date":"2009-01-15T07:00:01","date_gmt":"2009-01-15T12:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.flascience.org\/wp\/?p=864"},"modified":"2009-02-28T14:20:46","modified_gmt":"2009-02-28T19:20:46","slug":"spanish-moss-isnt-a-killer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?p=864","title":{"rendered":"Spanish moss isn’t a killer"},"content":{"rendered":"

I learned something new this morning. Landscaper Brian Schatz read a newspaper article about a middle school student taking on Spanish moss<\/a> for his science project. I remember reading that article and thinking “cool.” But the landscaper points out a major flaw in the student’s work: the moss is apparently not a threat to trees<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The story is a nice read but has major flaws. Spanish moss is not an environmental problem.<\/p>\n

Points about Spanish moss:<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u00a2 It’s an epiphyte, not a parasite.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u00a2 It takes advantage of slow growing or weakened trees with good bark crevices.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u00a2 It has more opportunities to flourish and become abundant in very sickened trees.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u00a2 It has been seen to grow on braided power line wires where crevices create opportunities for roots to fasten.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u00a2 Healthy trees shed bark and thereby slough moss onto the ground. As trunks and branches grow, bark with moss attached regularly flakes off. Healthy trees show little moss.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u00a2 Slowing, aged, damaged or dying trees do not slough bark regularly, thereby creating more opportunities for moss to send seeds into bark crevices and flourish.<\/p>\n

The first science lesson here should have been to dispel the myth that these epiphytes are “infesting” the trees and are something to feel sorry about.<\/p>\n

Continuing, the “natural substance” to fight this “problem” is also misleading. The moss is the canary in the coal mine, not the cause of tree death.<\/p>\n

Natural inquiry should have been, “Why do so many trees have Spanish moss on them?”<\/p>\n

Too often in my landscape design and consulting business, I have to dispel the myth that Spanish moss is the culprit in killing trees. With this article printed, it looks like I will be repeating it again and again. There is no wonder why this myth is so hard to get rid of.<\/p>\n

Also, Spanish moss is actually the habitat for a few bat species. I am sure that the bats would not appreciate a baking soda bath. Further, Cesar would likely regret the whole idea if he only knew about the bats and their place in the ecosystems of Florida.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Now I know why some trees in my yard are infested with moss whereas others aren’t. Cool. According to a few websites I searched (here’s one<\/a>), the landscaper is essentially right. The only threat the moss might pose to trees is covering some of the tree’s leaves and thus prevent photosynthesis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I learned something new this morning. Landscaper Brian Schatz read a newspaper article about a middle school student taking on Spanish moss for his science project. I remember reading that article and thinking “cool.” But the landscaper points out a … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcZNLl-dW","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1216,"url":"https:\/\/www.flascience.org\/?p=1216","url_meta":{"origin":864,"position":0},"title":"Good grief, Alachua!","author":"Brandon Haught","date":"August 13, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"We learned earlier that some candidates for various Alachua County school board seats had no problem with teaching creationism in the public schools. 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