Detailed Explanation of the Art of Accenting Landscape Bonsai with Moss

Ordinary root-textured stones have strong water absorption and tend to grow moss easily; hard stones, if kept in a damp and shady place for a long time, can also grow a thin layer of moss on their lower parts. As for where moss grows, there is more moss on the lower part of the rock and less on the upper part, less moss on the light-facing side and more on the shaded side; less moss on the ridges and more in the hollows. This is the law of natural ecology. If it is spread completely from front to back, it lacks a sense of realism and detracts from the natural beauty of the rock.

You can scrape moss off the shaded surface of a mountain or a wall corner and spread it directly onto the rockery stones; you can also mash the collected moss and mix it into thin mud slurry or rice water, then brush it onto the rocks with a brush; you can also spray a dilute fertilizer solution onto the rocks, cover them with a plastic bag, and place them in a cool spot with scattered light, and before long moss will grow on the landscape bonsai.

For moss used as seed material, choose to collect it from pond edges, wall bases, tree trunks, under trees and other places with good environmental conditions. The planting position of the moss should conform to natural laws. Pay attention to the variations of primary and secondary, large and small, gathering and scattering, sparse and dense, and follow the principle of "present in shady valleys, absent on sun-facing peaks." The moss should be trimmed in time so that it appropriately sets off the beauty of the stone material.

Moss, like our forefathers, is humble yet strong, simple yet persistent. Moss is suitable for growing in acidic soil. If the moss turns yellow, you can water it several times with a ferrous sulfate solution. That is how bonsai moss is made.

Moss in bonsai generally serves only as a cover on the pot soil to retain moisture. But growing moss in a water-and-stone pot and appreciating it independently as a moss bonsai actually has a charm all its own. Moss bonsai are relatively common in Japan. "Three parts cultivating plants, seven parts cultivating the person." On a spring morning, bend down and, together with the reviving moss, feel the wild breath of life's beginning.