[billethkid]

in our yard we are fortunate or not to have one of those majestic giant oaks with the beautiful flowing moss.

We have the silver looking bushes that screen our pool equipment...that is quite prolific growing very tall or cut short but dense. Now they are full of the spanish moss and literally killing the plants.

Is there anything that can be done to treat the moss?? Removing it by hand at best is a battle of endurance to ever attempt to get it all out.

btk

[kittygilchrist]

How much do you love the oak? I hate oaks in a small yard, and love them from afar.
TV offered to plant one in my yard as I was the lucky one on the street to get one. I declined having lived under oaks many years I know:
nothing grows under them, so no grass
roots are impossible to dig through
roots eventually rise and are unsightly and uproot concrete and invade plumbing
their leaves are too small to rake
acorns can't be raked and can dent your vehicle, not to mention making more oaks
if they grow over the house, shingles mildew and leaves accumulate, aging the roof
and best of all, when they age they drop limbs on your vehicle, house or head
to say nothing of the moss with chiggers in it that hangs on your shrubs.
oh and did I forget the squirrels that eat the acorns and birth in your trees who will raid the birdfeeder and go in your garage after anything edible and destroy the container, and who enjoy warm winters by eating through the soffit screens? and who smell abominably when they die in your attic?
Boy, I've been waiting to say that. Thanks for the topic. Have the tree removed.

[Madelaine Amee]

Originally Posted by billethkid

in our yard we are fortunate or not to have one of those majestic giant oaks with the beautiful flowing moss.

We have the silver looking bushes that screen our pool equipment...that is quite prolific growing very tall or cut short but dense. Now they are full of the spanish moss and literally killing the plants.

Is there anything that can be done to treat the moss?? Removing it by hand at best is a battle of endurance to ever attempt to get it all out.

btk

You have to pull it out by hand. We live on a golf course and regularly there are workers pulling the moss out of the trees by hand. I think if there was anything to kill it they would be using it!

[batman911]

The moss will not kill the host plant. At most it may block some of the sun from getting to the plant leaves. Spanish moss feeds from the air and only uses the host plant for support to hold it up.

[billethkid]

Originally Posted by kittygilchrist

How much do you love the oak? I hate oaks in a small yard, and love them from afar.
TV offered to plant one in my yard as I was the lucky one on the street to get one. I declined having lived under oaks many years I know:
nothing grows under them, so no grass
roots are impossible to dig through
roots eventually rise and are unsightly and uproot concrete and invade plumbing
their leaves are too small to rake
acorns can't be raked and can dent your vehicle, not to mention making more oaks
if they grow over the house, shingles mildew and leaves accumulate, aging the roof
and best of all, when they age they drop limbs on your vehicle, house or head
to say nothing of the moss with chiggers in it that hangs on your shrubs.
oh and did I forget the squirrels that eat the acorns and birth in your trees who will raid the birdfeeder and go in your garage after anything edible and destroy the container, and who enjoy warm winters by eating through the soffit screens? and who smell abominably when they die in your attic?
Boy, I've been waiting to say that. Thanks for the topic. Have the tree removed.

We have a very large side yard and space is not an issue.

The tree which is hundreds of years old was here when we arrived and will still be here long after we are "gone".

btk

[njbchbum]

btk - have you tried using a rake? my first thought was to use something like a cranberry/blueberry scoop. or would it be possible to use a leaf blower and shoot the air stream from the ground up? hope you find a solution!

[getdul981]

Originally Posted by batman911

The moss will not kill the host plant. At most it may block some of the sun from getting to the plant leaves. Spanish moss feeds from the air and only uses the host plant for support to hold it up.

We have 2 crepe myrtles in our yard and there appears to be spanish moss taking root or sprouting on the trunks. Seems like that would be detrimental to the health of the plant.

[asianthree]

Spanish moss creeps me out

[jblum315]

Spanish Moss does not have roots. It needs only air and a place to "perch." It takes nothing from its host

[kittygilchrist]

So you love your tree! I've just moved from a house where I removed several oaks that threatened the house and killed the grass, but the oldest and largest one was a bit farther from the house was too grand to cut and is still there even tho the roots crumpled up my driveway.
I agree with the person who suggested a yard rake for removing the moss from bushes.
Cheers,
Kitty

Originally Posted by billethkid

We have a very large side yard and space is not an issue.

The tree which is hundreds of years old was here when we arrived and will still be here long after we are "gone".

btk

[Jim 9922]

Originally Posted by getdul981

We have 2 crepe myrtles in our yard and there appears to be spanish moss taking root or sprouting on the trunks. Seems like that would be detrimental to the health of the plant.

That probably is not spanish moss. You have air plants growing in your bushes and you have to pull them out by hand to get rid of them. I don't think they hurt the plant itself, but they seem to hinder leaf growth as the air plant grows in size. They really seem to love to grow inside other bushes, and it is a real chore to get them out.

[getdul981]

Originally Posted by Jim 9922

That probably is not spanish moss. You have air plants growing in your bushes and you have to pull them out by hand to get rid of them. I don't think they hurt the plant itself, but they seem to hinder leaf growth as the air plant grows in size. They really seem to love to grow inside other bushes, and it is a real chore to get them out.

Thanks.