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Post by amanitovirosa on Jan 18, 2016 22:15:33 GMT -5
...I know I will get a lot of flack for this but in the least, I must make mention of it. My recent potting up of individual Dionaea seedlings out of an LFS 'Tub of Moss' of seedlings has resulted in these conclusions. 1 - seedlings appear to be very weak, lanky and weak 2 - moss has choked out seedlings 3 - seedlings cannot compete with the moss
...I have started tons of Dionaea seedlings seeded in a peat/sand media that were much more vigorous than the ones I am potting up now. Seedlings, I know, the moss outgrows them, but what about adult plants, not just Dionaea? Even though I like the moss and it's nice and fluffy and plush, I think it is, in reality, competition for the plant. I know it keeps the temps stable but what about in the long run? I will no longer try to grow the moss in my plants, regardless of how pretty it is, even the red stuff.
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Post by H2O on Jan 18, 2016 23:06:10 GMT -5
Live Sphagnum sucks with fly traps, I've thrown extra plants into my Sphagnum bog and they never do anything. The moss just grows too fast.
I've been doing a lot of trials with all of our native species of Drosera. Just like fly traps I've found some species love pest/sand and hate Sphagnum while others will only grow long term in it.
I think Sphagnum is great for certain plants and without it we would have an impossible time with some species.
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Post by roraima on Jan 19, 2016 0:54:37 GMT -5
I've never used it for germinaing or growing young Dionaea plants and I'm sure it could readily suffocate seedlings and young plants.
But I've found it serves very nicely as a top dressing for mature Dionaea, that also helps prevent soil erosion during those summer downpours.
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Post by bonfield on Jan 19, 2016 1:10:05 GMT -5
I use it to top-dress containers for Cephs, Helis and Neps only once they're large enough to not be overgrown before I can harvest it, it absorbs excess fertilizer that I spray on them, not to mention provides me with a constant supply of LFS for any other purpose.
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Post by Maiden on Jan 19, 2016 3:31:23 GMT -5
I always germinate my seeds(vft, helis, ceph etc) in LFS and i have great results, almost always 100% germination. And i let them in the moss until they are too big for the pot.
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Post by shoggoths on Jan 19, 2016 11:10:36 GMT -5
I use LFS to germinate seeds too. It seem to prevent mold better. I usually don't have great success germinating harder seeds on pet/sand mix. I must admit that LFS can be hard on small plants so I will often repot the plantlets in a pet/sand mix after they have strike. What I don't like of LFS is that it is really hard to not break the roots of the plant when repotting.
Maiden, your LFS for the VFT is not growing yet. It could explain your success. At the rate mine is growing, they would all be covered.
Like Bonfield, I like top-dress my pot with alive LFS. When it is dried, it mean to me I must water the plant.
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Post by Apoplast on Jan 19, 2016 19:47:57 GMT -5
I have to agree with Shogg. My biggest complaint about using LFS is getting the roots out during transplant. I know folks who grow tropicals in it, and receiving plants from them is a pain, because eventually you need to transplant, and you end up losing a significant percentage of roots.
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Post by bonfield on Jan 19, 2016 20:11:08 GMT -5
I'm much more careful these days, but I used to snag emerging cobra pitchers on strands of LFS while harvesting, the snapping sound when they broke off was just sickening.
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Post by Apoplast on Jan 19, 2016 20:21:53 GMT -5
Hi Bonfield - Ugh, I think I'd rather hear nails on a chalkboard. Nope. I know I would. I feel for you!
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Post by amanitovirosa on Jan 19, 2016 20:41:52 GMT -5
...good posts! What's really strange in that Tub of Moss of mine is the fact that I put milled LFS on top of regular LFS that is underneath, in the hopes that it would not grow. The milled moss grew more quickly than the regular stuff. By milled I mean I actually put it through one of those old fashioned hand cranked meat grinders, hydrated it before hand. The tangled roots are a real problem but I'm thinking that it possibly could be choking out adult plants as well. I know that plants need moisture and humidity but they need oxygen too. Lots of guys here post pics of their beautiful plants growing in lush LFS, I'm just wondering if the plants are better off for it. I use the stuff all the time but I think it will be a love/hate relationship for me from now on.
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Post by shoggoths on Jan 19, 2016 21:46:44 GMT -5
Hey hey hey, Ama ! One way of propagating sphagnum is to put some in a blender with water and spread the mix on the soil you wish it to grow on. By milling it, I think you did the opposite of what you wanted
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Post by Maiden on Jan 20, 2016 0:56:16 GMT -5
Maiden, your LFS for the VFT is not growing yet. It could explain your success. At the rate mine is growing, they would all be covered. My lfs grown a lot ! In all my pots. How LFS can be hard on lil plants ? Its very easy to trim the moss like you want, the shape you want, the way you want. In my opinion, and as i can read on many forums around the world im far to be the only one, LFS is magic on the seedlings. Mold stoper, stay very humid/wet, very airy. Its perfect. You just have to invest 3 minutes a week for trimming Francois
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Post by Apoplast on Jan 20, 2016 20:46:21 GMT -5
Bonjour Maiden - I don't think anyone is trying to impugn the productive use of LFS. It's certainly highly useful! It simply has down sides as well as the benefits. Sometimes, under some circumstances the benefits out weigh the costs, but in others they do not. Also, the different species of sphagnum grow at different rates under different conditions. My NZ LS grows enough to smother all but the largest or fastest growing plants in some of my tanks. I have an arctic species, and it grows exceedingly slowly under my conditions, and would be suitable for just about any plant. I worry about these things because I am too lazy to trip moss.
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Post by Avery on Jan 20, 2016 21:32:31 GMT -5
I regularly have to trim back the moss in my plant pots, and use tweezers to pluck moss from around the slower growing Nepenthes seedlings otherwise they will get overgrown. In my current set up it's difficult to access the plants in the back easily, so for this reason it can be inconvenient having to trim/pluck moss, otherwise it's enjoyable to do! I find that Sphagnum provides a good buffer for plants when fertilizing, and healthy Sphagnum usually means healthy plants. Once the Sphagnum gets growing too quickly it usually means my plants are being kept too wet for my liking and I adjust the misting system accordingly.
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Post by amanitovirosa on Jan 21, 2016 22:34:55 GMT -5
...the reason I started this thread is because I am curious to know about the long term effects of growing adult plants in LFS. I know I waited too long to repot those Flytrap seedlings and I could've trimmed the moss but I didn't. Must take 2 larger Nep seedlings, plant one in a peat mix, plant the other in LFS, give them the same conditions and see which one does better. I know it's good stuff, just trying to do some research.
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