Peat moss can hold more than 25 times its dry weight in water, which is much more than natural sponges do. Peat mosses are important for water management in northern regions.

Peat moss can hold more than 25 times its dry weight in water, which is much more than natural sponges do. Peat mosses are important for water management in northern regions.

Sphagnum moss only grows in northern bogs or wetlands. ... In Canada, 40,000 acres of peat moss are currently being harvested, with 90% of the product destined for the gardening industry.

There are an estimated 1.6 million square miles of peatlands, or about 3 percent of the Earth’s land surface, mostly in northern latitudes in Canada, Alaska, Europe and Russia.

Well, peat moss, often referred to as sphagnum moss, is fibrous and airy in texture, made up solely of the top layer of the peat. This makes it a popular component of potting mixes and seed ...

The peat moss Sphagnum palustre is found throughout the Northern Hemisphere, but the moss living in Hawaii appears to reproduce only through cloning, without the need for sex or production of spores.

Peat moss is naturally slightly acidic and can be used to balance the pH. “Most plants like pH to be about 6.0, and peat tends to be around there, making it ideal,” Satch says.

— Peat bogs are important ecosystems, and stripping them of moss is not considered sustainable. Q: I have purple plum trees, some of which have died a slow death. Others are getting there.

There are an estimated 1.6 million square miles of peatlands, or about 3 percent of the Earth’s land surface, mostly in northern latitudes in Canada, Alaska, Europe and Russia.

Peat moss and mulch do not perform the same functions. Credit: Getty Images/mariusFM77DEAR JOHN: The term mulch technically refers to any material used to cover the soil.