Essentially, it’s a terrarium that doubles as a miniature compost bin. The basic idea is that the moss produces oxygen, allowing for aerobic decomposition to occur in a sealed enclosure. I knew if I wanted aerobic decomposition to occur, I would need to have some kind of plant to produce oxygen. However, as I’ve seen for myself, most higher plants die in the presence of large amounts of decaying material. I’m not exactly why, but this isn’t the case for lower bryophytes such as mosses. They do just fine. If I ever want to add more compostable material to the jar, all I have to do is remove the moss, dump more in, and then put the moss back on top. Like my other systems, I’ll be sure to provide monthly updates on its progress. See you next month! 😃
by BusierMold58
2 Comments
One slight area of concern is that I haven’t seen any detrivores such as springtails or soil mites. If an out of control mold outbreak occurs, it could kill all of the moss. 🙁 However, as I’ve seen in my other systems, detrivores can seemingly pop up out of nowhere. So, maybe I have nothing to worry about. 🙂
Fascinating idea. I am very curious to see the result of this project.