Admittedly, despite its important functions in the ecosystem, moss isn't always pretty to look at. If it spreads as a dirty green film on the pavement or matts the lawn, the focus is on effective moss killers. We have put together for you here which active ingredients and methods have proved their worth in the home garden.

Destroying moss does not require the use of harmful chemicals

Moss destroyer from the store shelf

If you struggle with moss-covered paths and squares or a moss-covered lawn, specialist retailers have a wealth of products ready for you. The following table lists moss destroyers (€15.29) with their main active ingredient for the home garden, which have proven themselves in practice. The following explanations briefly summarize the advantages and disadvantages of these active ingredients:

Moss Destroyer scope of application main active ingredient
Natures Organic Weed Free paths, squares, lawns acetic acid
dr Stahler Moss-free Organic lawn pelargonic acid
Finalsan Weed-Free Plus Paths, squares, beds, lawns maleic hydrazide plus pelargonic acid
Lawn fertilizer plus moss killer lawn ferrous sulfate
Bayer garden weed free Turboclean AF garden, paths and lawn fatty acids (caprylic acid)
Roundup AC lawn Acetic acid (without glyphosate)
Floranid lawn fertilizer against weeds and moss garden, paths, lawn 2.4 D with dicamba and ferrous sulfate

This table lists representative products with effective, proven ingredients against moss that are approved for use in home gardens and small gardens. The database of the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety provides a detailed overview including the duration of the approval.

The active ingredients in the moss destroyer in detail

So that you know more precisely which active ingredient you are dealing with in the moss destroyers from specialist shops, we took a closer look. The following overview gives you what characterizes the main ingredients:

  • Acetic acid: In low concentrations, an active ingredient that is harmless to health and the environment
  • Pelargonic acid: Synthetically produced acid found in pelargonium (cranesbill family).
  • Maleic acid hydrazide: Systemically acting, chemical and toxic growth regulator
  • Ferrous Sulfate: Highly toxic to humans, animals and the environment with 20% sulfuric acid
  • Fatty Acids (Caprylic Acid): Synthesized ingredient found naturally in goat butter, milk and cheese
  • Dicamba: Chemical compound with GHS hazard label 05 for corrosive and 07 for warning

The active ingredient quinoclamin, which has been proclaimed in many places on the Internet as an innovation against moss, is not permitted for home and allotment gardens in Germany due to its extreme health and environmental hazard.

Moss destroyer from the kitchen shelf

Gardeners and farmers knew how to defend themselves against moss on paths and stone surfaces long before industry offered moss killers. They resorted to active ingredients that were already used in the household. To date, the following home remedies against moss have asserted themselves:

Boiling water

  • Pour boiling water over moss-covered areas
  • Sweep off the dead moss the next day

vinegar

  • Spray fruit or wine vinegar on the moss-covered area
  • Leave on for a day or two and scrub off
  • If necessary, repeat the treatment with vinegar after 4 weeks

soda/baking soda

  • Roughly scrape off the existing moss with the spatula
  • Dissolve 20 g of soda in 10 l of hot water and spray on
  • Let it work for a few days and turn away

Lime works against moss in the lawn through the back door

In order to permanently remove moss from a lawn, lime does not act as a direct moss destroyer. Rather, the agent makes a lasting contribution to the fact that moss no longer feels welcome at this location. The secret lies in the fact that lime raises the pH value in the soil. Since moss primarily spreads in acidic soil, while lawns favor a pH value of 6.0 to 7.0, lime acts as a moss killer in a secondary way. How to do it:

  • Mow the lawn as deep as possible in March/April or September/October
  • Comb out any existing moss with the scarifier (84.00€) lengthwise and crosswise
  • Pour lawn lime or dolomite lime into a spreader and distribute
  • Thoroughly water the limed lawn

By additionally sanding the lawn on very moist, compacted ground, you deprive moss of any basis for life. While iron fertilizer with toxic iron-II-sulphate only combats the current moss, you can permanently get rid of thatch in the lawn with lime. A single application in spring or fall is sufficient to keep soil acidity at a lawn-friendly level for up to 3 years. A pH value test provides information about the current status.

tips

Not all weed killers from the pantry in the kitchen make ecological sense. Salt is primarily to be mentioned here, consisting of sodium chloride. Scattered on moss, the active ingredient dries out the plant within a short time, causing it to die. However, this also applies to all neighboring ornamental and useful plants as well as to all soil organisms that come into contact with the salt.

Category:

Vegetable garden