I have a ficus bonsai in my office which has been doing very well. When I originally got it, there was a patch of moss growing underneath it in the pot, along with small stones. The original moss looked terrible (cats were involved), so I wanted to replace it with some from under a tree in my back yard.

I took some of the moss from my yard (some dirt still attached), and blended it with some buttermilk to create a paste. My question is can I apply this paste directly to the soil under the bonsai? As I understand it, the buttermilk provides acidity the moss needs to grow, but the ficus bonsai needs less acidic soil than the moss. For the moment, I spread the moss paste onto a piece of plastic ziplock bag on top of the bonsai soil to try to keep too much of the buttermilk from getting into the soil. (A large area of the bonsai soil is covered with small stones so water can get in and out). Should I move the paste directly on the soil, and can anyone tell me how long it will take for the moss to start growing?

Thanks

Thanks

I will let the Bonsai dry out to try and kill the mold.

I had left samples of the moss paste on bricks under the tree where the moss originally came from and will continue to watch if that grows at all. It appears that some kind of animal has eaten one of the samples, but maybe if one of the others grows I can transplant it to the bonsai.

If you take the time to study a well established moss area growing in the wild, either in shade or sun, and poke down into the moss carpet carefully you will note that the soil around the moss has very fine grained particulates. Moss grows best on these fine soils that have worked their way to the surface over long periods of time. This is why when collecting moss you want to remove it in a horizontal manner just below the surface in order to also collect that fine soil.