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Is it possible to transplant lichens?
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Posted by pianolady z4bIA (My Page) on Fri, Apr 28, 06 at 20:24
| Hello all, I'm new to rock gardening, and have a start on a slope on the back of my property (see below). I also have lichens growing on my old deck, which will be replaced in the next few years sometime. Is there any way I can "transplant" the lichens onto my rocks in the rock garden? Or, is this a silly or bad idea?
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Is it possible to transplant lichens?
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| If the lichens are growing on the rocks already then you needn't worry. But if the lichens are not then quite possibly they are not lithocarpic. If you wish to save the lichens then perhaps saving the part of the deck they are on and setting in on the slope might save the lichens but I doubt that they would spread to the rocks unless that is one of their natural substrates. |
RE: Is it possible to transplant lichens?
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| lichens are too sensitive to just scrape off and transplant. i collected rocks from woodland trails for my walls and borders and many have lichens, liverworts and moss growing on them. they have "seeded' other rocks since (but very slowly as thier growing conditions of light and water seem to be very specific). i have heard that if you put moss in a blender with buttermilk on a low setting and paint it on a surface such as a rock or pot, it will grow if kept moist, Maybe this will work with lichens. |
RE: Is it possible to transplant lichens?
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| Hi! I have also heard of using plain yogurt whizzed up in a blender w/ lichens...but never tried it myself. We've had a couple of mild but "wet enough" winters not to have to worry about the health of our lichen boulders. I have to figure out how to post pix here... |
RE: Is it possible to transplant lichens?
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| (bumping up this thread to get more info) Does anyone have any further info on transplanting lichen? I want to put some reindeer moss on a new property. I have loads of it in one place and none in another. I can try to move some small rocks, but I wonder is the moss in the blender method works for lichens as well. Also, what does lithocarpic mean?
Thanks,
Martha |
RE: Is it possible to transplant lichens?
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| Check out the comments at the bottom of the page at the link below. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Space Slime
RE: Is it possible to transplant lichens?
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| Lichens are not a single plant. They are not a moss but a symbiotic relationship between a fungus and an algae. And they are very site specific as to how they grow. Whatever they are growing on, that is what they need. Whatever direction they are facing that is the direction they need to face. Whatever amount of light they are receiving throughout the year, that is what they need. You could maybe take chunks of the wood from your deck and half bury it in your soil. The lichens would last as long as the wood. But are you sure that it is lichen? Maybe it IS moss. You can, as others have suggested, put many mosses in a blender with yogurt or buttermilk and then pour them on the soil or rocks but usually mosses need a fair amount of shade. |
RE: Is it possible to transplant lichens?
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| I've done it! I've just crumbled up pieces and sprinkled them in.
Worked for me, but lichen grows like mad here in WV Chris |
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