Sphagnum (sp)
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RJay ugiansky Resource Conservationist USDA NRCS - Norman A. Berg National Plant Materials Center Bldg 509 Beaver Dam Rd, BARC-East Beltsville, Maryland 20705 301-504-8175 410-504-8741 (fax) rjay.ugiansky@md.usda.gov http://plant-materials.nrcs.usda.gov/mdpmc/ |
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| Family Scientific Name: | Sphagnaceae | ||
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| Family Common Name: | Peat Moss Family | ||
| Scientific Name: | Sphagnum sp | ||
| Common Name: | SphagnumMoss, Peat Moss | ||
| Ecotype: | Cumberland Gap NHP, KY | ||
| General Distribution: | The greatest diversity exists primarily in the northern hemisphere in peat bogs and moist tundra. Relatively few species are found in the Southern hemisphere in New Zealand, Tasmania, and southernmost Chile and Argentina. | ||
| Known Invasiveness: | None | ||
| Propagation Goal: | plants | ||
| Propagation Method: | vegetative | ||
| ProductType: | Container (plug) | ||
| Stock Type: | stem fragments | ||
| Time To Grow: | 4 Months | ||
| Target Specifications: | 14" x 20" trays with 4" of densely growing moss. | ||
| Propagule Collection: |
Vegetative propagation is usually preferred as Sphagnum does not produce spores reliably or often and growth can be slow. Collected living plant fragments from upper 4 to 6 inches. We minimized the impact to the existing population by collecting only small (handful sized) samples from each thick hummock of moss and we spread out the collections over a wide area. We pushed the remaining moss back together to fill in the resulting holes to minimize evaporative moisture loss of remaining plants. |
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| Propagule Processing: | Sphagnum is very sensitive to desiccation. We kept the sphagnum moist by placing the moss in plastic bags with no additional moisture. Bags were tied shut with only a slight amount of ventilation and kept out of direct sunlight. | ||
| Pre-Planting Treatments: | Living sphagnum moss fragments were sorted to remove plant debris and other living plants including other species of moss. Sphagnum fragments were kept long and were not chopped into smaller pieces. Fragments do not require rooting hormone or other treatment. | ||
| Growing Area Preparation/ Annual Practices for Perennial Crops: |
A one inch layer of hydrated peat moss was placed into 14" x 20" x 4" Kadon trays with drain holes. These trays were placed into equal sized Kadon trays with no drainage holes to hold water and minimize wateringdemand. Water was added to the doubled trays to a level of one inch deep in the upper tray. Before use, the water was left to stand overnight to remove chlorine as sphagnum may be harmed by chlorinated water. These trays were allowed to sit overnight if the peat moss had not already been saturated enough to prevent floating. The sphagnum fragments were placed horizontally on the surface of the wet peat moss. About 25 fragments 2" to 4" long were placed in each tray. Either the lower ends of the fragments were pushed into the peat moss or an additional thin sprinkling of wet peat moss was added over the fragments and de-chlorinated water was watered over the trays to ensure good contact and moisture wicking with the wet peat moss. | ||
| Establishment Phase: |
Trays were watered overhead with de-chlorinated water using a watering can. Water was maintained at a depth of ¬" to 1" in the upper trays. Trays were maintained in a greenhouse with daylength kept fairly constant, around 14 h. Natural daylength is augmented during the winter months by light supplied by 1000 watt sodium lamps. The greenhouse is covered with a whitewash solution that provides 30% sunlight shading from mid-April to October. Temperatures were maintained between 65 and 85 degrees F. |
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| Length of Establishment Phase: | 1 to 2 weeks | ||
| Active Growth Phase: | Fragments continue to grow from tips and branch at leaf axils. | ||
| Length of Active Growth Phase: | 10 weeks | ||
| Hardening Phase: | trays of sphagnum were not hardened prior to outplanting. | ||
| Harvesting, Storage and Shipping: | Plants were transported to planting site in the upper growing trays without the lower water holding tray. Trays were wrapped in plastic to prevent drying and were kept out of direct sunlight. | ||
| References: |
Boudreau, S. and Rochefort, L. (1998) Restoration of post-mined peatlands: effect of vascular pioneer species on sphagnum establishment. In: Peatland Restoration and Reclamation, 14-18 July 1998, 39-43. Grosvernier, P.H., Matthey, Y. and Buttler, A. (1995) Microclimate and physical properties of peat: new clues to the understanding of bog restoration processes. In: B.D. Wheeler, S.C. Shaw, W.J. Fojt and R.A. Robertson (eds.) Restoration of temperate wetlands. John Wiley & Sons, Chichester: 435-450. Petranka, J.W. (2003) Assessment of function of a wetland mitigation site at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, Annual report for 2003. University of North Carolina at Asheville, 24p. Rochefort, L., Quinty, F. and Campeau, S. (1997) Restoration of peatland vegetation: the case of damaged or completely removed acrotelm. International Peat Journal, 7: 20-28. |
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Citation:
Ugiansky, Richard Jay. 2007. Propagation protocol for production of Container (plug) Sphagnum sp plants stem fragments; USDA NRCS - Norman A. Berg National Plant Materials Center Beltsville, Maryland. In: Native Plant Network. URL: https://NativePlantNetwork.org (accessed 2024/05/18). US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Center for Reforestation, Nurseries, and Genetic Resources.
