Composting moss
Daisyday
Posts: 373
I have raked up a lot of moss from my lawn and wondered whether the moss would be OK to be put on my compost heap. I dithered about it and some went in my green bin and some on the heap. Does anyone know the answer to this conundrum?
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If you layer it in to the compost (like you should with anything) I can't see a problem using it. It won't add a lot of nutrients but it will add fiber and texture.
I've composted moss taken from lawns and never had any problem.
Moss is usually a sign of poor drainage, if the beds you add the finished compost to aren't badly drained, it'll not come back to life.
Thank you all. It appears that there are differing opinions on this query. My soil is very sandy and I am puzzled as to why there is so much moss about. We haven't had a particularly wet winter either.I hope it all disappears when the summer comes!
I have found that moss can take longer to decompose than other green material. I would, therefore, only add it in very thin layers so it is helped to decompose by the other green & brown material around it. Maybe consider a compost activator as well. Otherwise you could end up with viable moss in the compost (per Welsh Onion's comment) which could spread the problem round your garden.
I'm assuming that you didn't apply moss and weedkiller to your lawn prior to raking. If you did - I wouldn't add it at all - in case you have residual weedkiller in your final compost.
Moss only grows in certain conditions that favour it. If the conditions favour it, it will grow there regardless.
Composting in layers (as suggested already in my reply) will ensure it actually composts down and doesn't cause problems. We get buckets full of moss that blows off our roof every winter, it all goes on the compost, and amazingly my veg plot isn't covered in moss, why would be, it doesn't have the suitable dark damp conditions to favour moss growing...
No Topbird I won't add moss killer as it wouldn't be environmental and and I do try
to be green!
Thank you Edd and everyone who has offered advice and useful information.
I live in Vancouver British Columbia where you learn to live with moss. I have avoided putting it in my compost because it does not get all that hot. I do put it out for the city compost which gets extremely hot. A few weeks ago I read an article suggesting moss should go in your compost with other greens.
I was hoping to find if others were in agreement with this but obviously opinions are very mixed..
This is largely about composting isn't it. one more opinion for you from the UK. We have the luxury of a lot of space, but also large lawns with a huge amount of moss ( presume no scarifying for decades). I scarified last year and created mountain after mountain of moss/thatch/grass. mostly moss. even with a machine this was quite an undertaking. of the various piles that were made, one in particular has rotted down beautifully all of it's own accord in 12 months, under a deciduous tree. Assume that was about ten large compacted trugs worth. actually a small pile as far as it went elsewhere. it's now about one trug of what looks like a useful addition to composting material. so if 12 months is 'slow' for you then don't do that. if 12 months is fine for you, then i'd just stack it up somewhere out of the way and wait. I have quite enough to do, without 'turning' a compost pile every few weeks! I do the same with leaves, i just wait 18 months and the leaf-mold is brilliant stuff.