Effects of Soil Type on the Growth of Polytrichum Commune

Abstract

Mosses, classified as bryophytes, are of economic importance in the horticulture industry where
they are used for decoration and gifts. Polytrichum commune (common haircap moss) is a popular
moss species used in TerraLiving’s terrariums. However, moss growth is slow, taking up to 12
months for complete growth which limits its economic value. Moss is conventionally grown on
peat soil but its prolonged use under the slow moss growth is uneconomical. Therefore, synthetic
soil has been proposed as an alternative growth media. Hence, the aims of this study are to
investigate the physicochemical characteristics of both peat and synthetic soils which affect the
growth of common haircap moss (in terms of increase in horizontal length and number of shoots).
Soil pH and cation exchange capacity (CEC) to study the rationale behind. Polytrichum commune
was grown in both peat and synthetic soils over a course of 6 weeks (after an acclimatization period
of 2 weeks) to determine their rate of growth in different soil types, measured in terms of horizontal
length increment (in mm) and number of new shoots. It was observed that the moss grown in peat
soil exhibited greater horizontal growth (9.280 ± 2.756 mm) than synthetic soil. This is heavily
linked to the significantly lower pH and higher CEC of peat soil. The number of shoots formed
was similar in both peat and synthetic soil (8.267 ± 1.535 and 7.8 ± 0.803 respectively), possibly
due to similar levels of phytohormone production. In conclusion, peat soil is a better media for the
growth and cultivation of P. commune.