I have had a great time playing with my scavenged sea grape
leaves and Spanish moss since we returned from warmer places. Multi-textured vegetation
on the clay—what could be better? Simple pleasure!
Spanish moss, it turns out, is neither Spanish nor moss. It
is also called “beard lichen,” but it isn’t lichen either. It is a flowering (albeit
the flowers are very tiny) plant with
thin curling tendrils and no aerial roots. It hangs in the trees, favoring
those great live oaks, and simply absorbs nutrients and water from the air and
rainfall. However plentifully it grows, it seldom does any harm to the trees it
inhabits throughout the humid southern regions. There is a great deal of the fibrous
stuff, and it has many uses (mulch, insulation, packing, stuffing, etc.).
Floridian tour guides love talking about Henry Ford’s inspiration to use the abundant
and free Spanish moss to fill the seats of Model T’s-- and then finding out that
it often harbors chiggers. The result, predictably, was allegedly the first
recall.
Having once encountered said chiggers while collecting driftwood, I carefully
boiled my Spanish moss (and the pillow case I kept it in) in our single
good-sized pot in the travel trailer. (I then thoroughly cleaned our kettle!) I
air dried the mass and tangle of bromeliad -- and now I
get to play!
On pots, it is just fun-- kinky and curly, wiry and
surprisingly sturdy. Keep an eye out for it! It’s in there with the pine
needles, cedar twigs, and other wonderful gifts from Mother Nature. They keep
me going while we wait for spring leaves!
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