Mossin' Annie's New Mossery

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Mountain Moss has a new Mossery which is located in a shady grove of mature pine trees in Brevard, NC. The expanse of green appeal is moss-some!

If you live nearby, we invite you to come to MOSS-apalooza – The Grand Opening of my Mossery and Book Release Party on Saturday, September 5^th from 2 – 5 pm. You can stroll along paths or sit a spell to soak in all the beauty. At 2:30, expect a bit of speechifying about my book, The Magical World of Moss Gardening, and of course, I'll be happy to sign your book. You might find moss fairies flitting around this green oasis. If you are a moss DIYer, this is your opportunity to buy some cool mosses for your projects.

In 2015, we’ve tackled the enormous task of moving our Mossery and all of our moss cultivation operations to a convenient location near downtown. After clearing tons of English ivy in preparation (a challenging and laborious task captured on YouTube video), we have about 5000 sq ft of shade and sun moss species in production – container trays for DIY projects, moss mats that roll out like emerald carpets.

It’s a beautiful setting for a Mossery and only a couple of miles from home. My moss assistants and I get to enjoy cardinals, robins, doves, and even a crow (that we’ve named Royce) flitting all around and serenading us while we work. We can get into the swing of daily production duties to the beat of an incredible drummer, Jeff Sipe, whose studio is nearby. To our delight, we have three white squirrels and their gray brothers and sisters frolicking around. Occasionally, an Eastern box turtle wanders through. Sounds enchanting? Well, these pesky critters and birds create challenges for our cultivation efforts. We’ve resorted to using greenhouse-type shade screens over trays and mats to avoid devoting time to incessant repairs. The realities of being a moss farmer…

Have you been craving mosses for your home or business? Maybe it’s time to expand your moss footprint in your landscape. Autumn and even winter are ideal seasons to plant mosses. Transform your grass lawn into a moss carpet or create a small moss focal feature with live mosses available at our new Mossery or through our online Moss Shop. Shipped live and fresh, home gardeners and landscapers can select from a variety of mosses including familiar choices as well as exclusive specialty species.

We will continue to schedule special appointments for interested moss shoppers. In the near future, Mountain Moss will offer designated moss shopping days as well as a series of hands-on moss gardening classes/workshops at our new Mossery. I’ll keep you posted with details in the next newsletter. In the meantime, please realize that the Mossery is a production facility and therefore, it is NOT open to the general public on a regular basis. Thanks to Jeffrey Fletcher, innovative photographer, and his daughter, for being our very first “by appointment only” customers (http://jeffreymfletcher.com). We’ve had some other distinguished visitors as well – Dr. Larry Mellichamp from Charlotte, NC (author, Native Plants of the Southeast, Timber Press, 2014); a group of student researchers from South Korea funded by LG Global Challenge; and J. Paul Moore, aka “Moss Man” and superb photographer from Nashville, TN (jpaulmoorephoto.com).