Due to personal living conditions, the graves of family members are often a little further away from their own place of residence. The relatively easy-care star moss is well suited for greening graves, as it gets along well with most locations and looks particularly pretty when it is in bloom.

Sternmoos is an easy-care grave planting

The advantages of star moss when planting graves

The star moss is characterized by various factors that are positive for a permanent grave planting with little regular care:

  • it needs little or no fertilizer
  • it is perennial and hardy
  • at locations in the semi-shade it is content with the rain as a water supply

While other plants sometimes look rather unsightly after flowering and withered inflorescences should be removed, seeds ripen on the flower stalks of the dainty flowers of the star moss, which due to their tiny size do not visually disturb the overall picture. In addition, the flowers of Sagina subulata are white, which can symbolize purity and hope in the cemetery. Since the star moss only grows a few centimeters high, it does not overgrow grave lanterns or holy water containers.

Possible difficulties with the star moss planting at the cemetery

In cemeteries, pure plant peat is usually used as a substrate for optical reasons, as this has a uniform black colour. The Sternmoos gets along with a slightly acidic soil, but the peat-rich substrate stores rainwater very well. This can lead to a certain level of waterlogging, which star moss tolerates poorly. Before planting, the soil under the star moss should be made more permeable with sand. If a grave planted with star moss is not visited for an entire summer season, the plants may spread laterally beyond the edge of the grave. Simply cut off overly proliferating parts of the star moss with garden shears. Since snails like to pounce on the Sternmoos, an edge barrier made of sharp-edged gravel should be considered.

Combine the star moss with other decorative elements.

Since the star moss initially forms almost round cushions, this plant can be used to create decorative shapes on the grave surface. Particularly attractive patterns can be created with brightly colored pebbles or bark mulch. In this way you also prevent unwanted growth of foreign herbs, against which the star moss can usually only assert itself poorly.

tips

The Sternmoos is basically perennial and also hardy, but rather short-lived. You should therefore resow bare spots in good time and remove fallen leaves before winter, as otherwise the plants may become moldy over the winter.

Category:

Vegetable garden