The moss is gathering...

The weekend was the first opportunity I’ve had to
really have a look at the meadow in the back garden this year. One thing I have
noticed, and Nicole noticed it as well, was that there seems to be a lot more
moss than in previous years, to the extent that it is now threatening to
dominate the meadow. I’ll need to get down and try to identify the species
when I get a chance but there seem to be only 2 species – I’ll post
some pictures later on. In the mean time I’ll keep an eye on it - I assume
that as the growing season progresses the vascular plant species will dominate
the sward but if not I might need to intervene. Interestingly the wet area near
the pond, which I left longer over the winter to provide a refuge for insects
has remained moss free. Perhaps I cut the grass to short in autumn? The grass in
the neighbours’ lawns in scalped to within a millimeter of its life and now
the lawns are about 90% moss. It would be ironic, but bloody annoying, if after
all my hard work the meadow ended up indistinguishable from all the other crap
lawns in the neighbourhood. The main causes of moss in lawns are:
 
· Cutting the
grass too short – this may have been a problem last autumn but is not
generally on the meadow!
· Compaction –
the meadow is not generally walked on so this should not be a problem, although
it may have settled.
· Poor drainage
– the meadow sits on a bed of crushed concrete and limestone, so it
should be very free draining. Note that the wet meadow which has not suffered
is less well drained than the dry meadow (it is lined).
· Shading –
it is in an open, sunny position.
· Low
nutrients – this could be a cause.
 
So low nutrients and the cutting regime are the most likely
candidates, but these are standard requirements for meadow creation, and my
research so far has not thrown up moss as being a problem. In fact I have not
been able to find any mention of moss in grassland habitat creation. Maybe that
is because it isn’t a problem, maybe the authors of the books and
articles I am researching do not regard moss as being a problem (this is not a
bowling lawn) it does have many uses after all but as I suggest above, there is
no shortage of moss in these parts…