ball moss on live oaks
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John Paul Sanborn
Above average climber
We don't get that stuff up here. I have heard that Spanish moss can choke even a large tree out. I understand that in FLA/GA removing moss is a major revenue sorce for some tree companies. If it grows dence enough so that the leaves dont get light it will stress the treee.
I have done Kudzu removal, by the time I got down from the third tree it had overgrown the first one already
.
I have done Kudzu removal, by the time I got down from the third tree it had overgrown the first one already
.Thanks for replying! I have checked the internet and the Texas Forest Service says its n
parasyte or a moss even! That it is a flower and will not damage the tree..but I have seen
significant moss on the trees around here..crepe myrtles, oaks whatever and they look
like the trees are thinning out..it is rather expensive to spray and trimming has to be
done anyway..here the trees are like sculptured canapies..so I don't want to lose any
trees but don't want to be "taken" either! All the 10 yr. trees down the street have moss
covering their trunks..that can't be good?!
parasyte or a moss even! That it is a flower and will not damage the tree..but I have seen
significant moss on the trees around here..crepe myrtles, oaks whatever and they look
like the trees are thinning out..it is rather expensive to spray and trimming has to be
done anyway..here the trees are like sculptured canapies..so I don't want to lose any
trees but don't want to be "taken" either! All the 10 yr. trees down the street have moss
covering their trunks..that can't be good?!
John Paul Sanborn
Above average climber
If it is on the trunk then it is not so bad, it is when the outer branches get covered and choke out the leaves. Many times on trunks people mistake lichen for moss.
Smaller trees have even more problem I talked to a lady when I was in Savanah GA and she was complaining that the spanish moss was choking out the crepe myrtel
BTW lichen is a symbiote of fungus and algea. it lives in many moist dark surfaces, like roofs, trunks, stone... it is benign on mature bark.
Smaller trees have even more problem I talked to a lady when I was in Savanah GA and she was complaining that the spanish moss was choking out the crepe myrtel
BTW lichen is a symbiote of fungus and algea. it lives in many moist dark surfaces, like roofs, trunks, stone... it is benign on mature bark.
treeclimber165
Member A.K.A Skwerl
Hey John,
Good points, but I don't believe he is referring to spanish moss or lichen.
Ball moss is actually an air plant, it grows on power lines as an example. But trees that have a lot of it are usually either weak or not actively growing. Actively growing trees will slough it off as the bark grows I think. Ball moss also likes shady areas more than full sun. About the only solution to get rid of it is to pick it off. It will keep growing, but you can keep it down to a not-so-unsightly level.
Good points, but I don't believe he is referring to spanish moss or lichen.
Ball moss is actually an air plant, it grows on power lines as an example. But trees that have a lot of it are usually either weak or not actively growing. Actively growing trees will slough it off as the bark grows I think. Ball moss also likes shady areas more than full sun. About the only solution to get rid of it is to pick it off. It will keep growing, but you can keep it down to a not-so-unsightly level.
treeman82
Addicted to ArboristSite
I really don't know anything about moss removal, but would pressure washing work possibly?
John Paul Sanborn
Above average climber
Hmm, bromeliad, epiphyte.
Brian, Will it choke out a seniscent tree if allowed to "take over"?
Brian, Will it choke out a seniscent tree if allowed to "take over"?
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