19 Comments
Apr 4Liked by Betje

If you like moss, you'll love the book Gathering Moss by Robin Wall Kimmerer!

Expand full comment

I’ll pluck taller plants from between my bricks but I always leave the moss. It’s a beautiful mortar. ☺️

Expand full comment

Never actually thought about moss benefits 🤔 thank you

Expand full comment

You MUST respect the moss!

Expand full comment

In my day job as a conservator of outdoor sculptures and monuments I regularly have to kill moss, lichen and algae. I always feel guilty but they are just a bit too good at turning stone back to soil if you are trying to preserve something for the long term!

Expand full comment

Here in the Pacific Northwest it's pretty pointless to battle moss. While I like moss and see it's usefulness, when it's on your home's roof it can compromise the asphalt tiling and shorten the life of the roofing which could lead to other problems. That's the only place where I make sure to scrape it off. On the plus side it does show that moss could be used as a way to breakdown petrochemical based products.

Expand full comment
founding

Not _only_ do I pressure-wash my driveway each year, I'm also *addicted* to video's of https://www.youtube.com/@PartridgeExteriorCleaning that show how they clean stuff.

Arguably, that's not _moss_ though, it's just ... dirt that evolved to life.

Expand full comment

Moss is beautiful!

Expand full comment