Moss help!

[bioteach]

Okay so I am a new Sally owner and I am trying to have it all: an easy to disassemble, great looking habitat for my tiger salamander, Sally. I am a teacher so I have to take everything home during christmas and summer vacation. Particularly I would love to have healthy moss but it just isn't working out that way.

First I bought the dehydrated moss from petsmart, which looked fabulous for about a week and then went downhill. Next I cut up moss when I was on vacation at a very secluded spot in minnesota near a national park (very environmentally conscious people in those parts). The moss looked pretty good when I got it, but I was determined to help keep it alive so I got a grow light (just a single bulb I replaced on a nightstand lamp). Below are my before and after pics.


BEFORE:

AFTER:

What I want to know is, from those of you that have that beautiful moss that keeps growing and growing, How do you do it?!

-Sarah (P.S. Sorry the pics are so big I'm gunna try to figure that one out soon...)

 

[Chinadog]

It looks like it has dried out? I grow moss on my C. pyrrho's turtle dock, it does very well, but it always has its feet in the water so it can soak up tank water like a sponge. You could maybe try misting it once or twice a day?

 

[AdvythAF]

I collected a piece of wood completely covered with moss, and my moss is pretty healthy. I think the key is high humidity and good lighting. My moss is in my White's Tree Frog tank that is at 70-80% most of the time.

 

[bioteach]

I collected a piece of wood completely covered with moss, and my moss is pretty healthy. I think the key is high humidity and good lighting. My moss is in my White's Tree Frog tank that is at 70-80% most of the time.

Thanks for the advice! What kind of lighting do you use?

 

[AdvythAF]

I use LED lighting. It is the Exo-Terra Day & Night LED, but I don't turn it on at night.