Hi Gonz and Lisa, Thanks for the interesting links. Now I know where the name came from. Also another very interesting pice of information from Gonz's article: Why Moss is Desirable for Stuffing: No known insect will attack moss fibre, eat, destroy or live within it. I wonder if the same applies to the living moss, and if so, could it act as a deterrent to insects if it is draped around the top of pots containing broms? For those who don't know of Lantana, it is a real pest in Australia as the description from a recent A.B.C. Gardening Australia fact sheet explains: "Lantana camara might look like a strikingly attractive plant and in some respects the foliage and flowers are quite beautiful. The species is a genus of the verbena family, native to Mexico, the Carribean and Central and South America. But it is now known as a weed of national significance and is regarded as one of Australia's worst weeds. It's invasive, it has potential to spread and it is impacting on the economy and the environment. Lantana was first recorded in Australia in the Adelaide Botanic Gardens in 1841, and a few years later it had spread to gardens up the east coast of the country. By the 1860s it was reported as a weed in both Sydney and in Brisbane. But in spite of its weed status, a few specimens are located in the Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne. Botanica calls lantana the "Jekyll and Hyde of plants" because it's reviled in warmer, wetter parts of world, where it invades pastures and forests and is poisonous to stock, but in cool, temperate parts of the world it forms quite an attractive shrub. Lantana is a problem because it forms a dense thicket. It usually invades disturbed land and river margins, particularly open, sunny areas. Given the right conditions, it spreads quickly. Lantana is a lalopathic, releasing chemicals into the surrounding soil to prevent seed germination, notably of the native flora, so that it eventually takes over native bushland. As with other successful weeds, lantana can spread in different ways. It layers - that is, it produces roots from where the plant touches the ground, and that produces new plants. But more importantly it's propagated by seed. These are ingested by birds and foxes, which spread them through their droppings. This means it can spread over a distance very quickly. But perhaps more importantly, it can produce up to 12,000 seeds from one plant in a year. No wonder it's become a problem weed." I know it's a bit off track but just out of interest for other GW members, I once had an orchid growing mate (about 40 years ago) who had a cousin who owned a farming property in Northern NSW and on his property Spanish Moss didn't grow on the trees, but instead was prolific in amongst the Lantana bushes. Most Australian farmers will quickly eradicate any Lantana on their property but my friend said his cousin preferred to leave it there because he liked the look of the enormous clumps of Spanish Moss hanging from it. It worked for us too, because every time my mate came back from up north, he would bring a large bag full of moss with him which we shared and hung above our orchids, and that is where the Spanish Moss I have in my garden today originally came from. I know it's a useless bit of info., but there it is. All the best, Nev.

Thanks for resurrecting this thread. It is very informative. The presence of moss growing on the surface of a potted plant may or may not be something to be concerned about. I think it depends on the kind of plant you are growing and the kind of culture you are providing the plant. Generally the moss must be well irrigated as well as having the necessary humidity and temperatures needed for it to survive. Most plants that do not require copious amount of aeration to the roots, such as orchids, may be at risk of root loss since the moss would tend to serve as an indicator of soil decomposition. A careful look at your plant roots should be the rule when growing with a dense moss growth. Even with orchids there are some that do quite well with the dense moss, Dendrobium cuthbertsonii for example. The best rule is to know the cultural needs of the plants you are growing and be able to make a determination that the presence of a dense moss growth is a plus or a minus in your cultivation.

has it grown much? yes, it puts out new basal fronds every few months and each frond gets bigger and bigger than the previous. The problem I think with ridleyi is that we feed it too much and water it too much. It will be fine just growing as an air plant, like how we grow tillandsias. Water does get channeled to the roots eventually. I do like growing these in baskets because they are easy to maintain. While this mounted specimen is established on the cork, I have several that are just sitting in a redwood baskets. I will be transplanting a few ridley's soon and will photograph what I do. Once they are set up in the greenhouse its difficult to photograph. I like the nylon stocking method of fertilizing and find that this species respond best to small doses of fertilizers than a heavy dose. A weak constant feed works best for this species and of course good air circulation/lighting. Insect problems? No ants and no sucking pests. I use a systemic granule mixed with osmocote or magamp in a nylon stocking. These get watered regularly and fert/insect-dosed when I get at it with the hose. Otherwise a drip/mist catches this on a timer and is regulated by weather conditions. I grow mine is Hawai'i so we have favorable weather the year around. The greenhouse that I keep ridleyi's in are without side enclosures and without a shade or protective roofing. The roof is basically a metal cage type used for hanging and I also have rare tillandsias hanging among the ridelyi's. I also have a more shadier house with similar roof with my madagascariense mixed with the younger ridleyi's growing out until they need to be replanted. I am in the process if getting some ridleyi's out into full sun. I believe these will be the best looking ridleyi's once acclimated.

From my experience, I would not recommend buying moss online. They tend to ship it sheered off above the soil, so it has to regrow its little grabbers (it has no true roots) and the birds, especially the cat birds, like to flip it over to look for bugs and worms. Even with netting stapled to the ground, the amount that survived was minimal. Transplanting from around the property, on the other hand, was close to 100% successful. Just slice out a rectangle with a little steak knife the size of your spatula and then slide the spatula under the moss so as to leave about 3/8 to 1/2 inch of soil. Remove any loose debris from your destination and build it up with clay soil if it's not high enough, pressing it in lightly, then simply place the moss and press it in with your foot. Removing only part of the moss from the source location and filling in the gaps with clay soil will encourage regrowth, and I have found that removing any grass growing in and around it with your fingers, especially on a damp day, will allow the moss to thrive. I now have what you might describe as a small moss "farm" in a couple of locations. I have so far filled up the spaces between square pavers, used as a walkway, and adjacent areas. I have also found that placing the moss between the pavers encourages the moss to grow on the pavers. Basically, the more moss you have, the more you will have. I have also tried placing small strips of moss in the spaces in a crude brick rosette I made from bricks I salvaged from the base of an old handrail. Again, just build up the spaces with clay soil and then press in small strips and clumps with your fingers. I appear to have at least two species, one light green and one dark green, which produces an interesting mottled pattern.