Thread by @KBSpangler

Good morning! And if you're reading the IPCC report...well, good morning anyhow.

A lot of people will be shouting about personal responsibility and corporate carbon burdens and government interventions and...and...and...

And I'm going to talk about moss.

Moss is great! Did you know that peatlands (wetland bogs) are immense carbon sinks?

iucn.org/resources/issu…

Peatlands are found across the planet. They are, perhaps, best known for their corpses.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bog_body

Peat moss is also widely used to change the composition of the soil in gardening and landscaping.

(But please stop buying it. bbc.com/news/science-e…)

It's unlikely that you'll be able to put a peat bog in your own backyard. That's like planting a tree and calling it a forest. But if you live in a climate where moss grows, you can introduce other mosses and lichens, as these are small carbon sinks on their own.

Moss is highly adaptable to most conditions except the high desert. It doesn't have roots so it can grow on almost any surface. Which means that it's possible to put small carbon capture towers anywhere, even in cities.

forbes.com/sites/trevorna…

Because this is Twitter, I'm going to add that moss is absolutely not *THE* solution. It might not even be *A* solution. But if you'd like to make a carbon sink that's more efficient than planting an oak tree and waiting, you can propagate your own moss.

It's really easy to find moss to propagate!

I'm not going to say you should find a little scrap of moss in a public space and steal it. I'm definitely not going to say I've done this more times than I can count and not only has nobody ever complained, they haven't even noticed.

I will say that you can get both dried moss and moss "seeds" (spores) online, and the current trend in terrariums and fairy gardens means there's a wide range of adorable live mosses at garden centers and online.

Look at this adorable motherfucker.
etsy.com/listing/105195…

Start small! If you have an apartment or lack a yard, grab a bunch of household crap you aren't using and make a moss bowl. You can put it anywhere as moss isn't a rooted plant and doesn't need light. Give it water and let it grow.

bhg.com/gardening/desi…

If you have more space outside, let your moss run wild and free! It's beautiful and (once you get the weed seeds out) low-maintenance.

gardengatemagazine.com/articles/desig…

There are downsides to moss. I haven't replaced my lawn with moss as it's SLIPPERY AS FUCK when wet and can be a hazard. Moss also has a low saturation level and isn't as good as preventing erosion as grass.

But I've got an acre of wooded land, and I'm growing it everywhere else

So if you're feeling shitty about climate change, try MOSS! It's a miniature carbon sink that can grow anywhere from a small bowl on a kitchen table to an entire forest.

And planting it will get your mind off of our impending doom for, like, an hour. Win-win.

p.s.: Here’s the quarantine garden I planted last summer. Shade plants and moss. It takes time to establish moss and you can totally tell I own a male dog, but it’s worth it.