Cabbage Moss

Discussion in 'Garden Pest Management and Identification' started by kschindelhauer, Jul 17, 2007.

  1. kschindelhauer

    kschindelhauer Member

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    Maple Ridge, BC, Canada
    I live in Maple Ridge BC & have a large garden.It is a brand new garden with new beds/lawns etc.I also have a septic area which we are gardening around.I have moss like growth all over the place-it seems invasive to me but is easy to pull up.It is very similar to moss in that it has a very shallow root(?)system.It looks cabbage like and the flowers or spores are like small star like flowers and appear all over the mat of moss. It does not show up in our lawns, but in the beds and grows so fast it quickly chokes things.Does anyone know what this is & how to control it?
     
  2. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

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    Can you post a photo?
     
  3. growest

    growest Active Member 10 Years

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    Just going by your description of a plant that takes over the bed surfaces, I would guess liverwort...I guess you could call it cabbage like, and the "flowers" are like stars on their little stems...

    Sounds like you have soil that is wet on it's surface much of the time...possibly automatic sprinklers in your newly installed beds? And perhaps heavy soil, like clay?

    You can carefully spray these areas with vinegar to knock the liverwort back, but be careful not to hit your desirable plants. Also can just hoe the things and let them dry out on the surface. Water less often (and for a longer time to compensate) if the sprinklers are coming on every day or so.
     

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  4. kschindelhauer

    kschindelhauer Member

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    You are correct-this is the culprit.We do have a watering system in the beds-but it originally appeared in the beds where the water table is fairly high during the winter months(rain)-now it has spread to the beds where it tends to be more shady.I will try the vinegar system but I will have to get a spray bottle as there is a fair size area to cover. Thanks
     
  5. Ron B

    Ron B Paragon of Plants 10 Years

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    Your problem is that your beds are bare, compacted and damp. Like moss, the sexual cycle of liverwort requires a film of water for the sperms to swim in. Throwing mulch onto it would probably kill most, if not all of it - and improve conditions markedly for the garden plants in the beds. Cannot say the same for spraying highly acidic vinegar over the root zones of plants you wish to keep happy.
     

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