culture - water quality

Subject: Re: bryonet-mains water query
Date: Mon, 29 Apr 2002 14:00:43 BST
From: Sean Edwards <mzfses@mail1.mcc.ac.uk>
To: bryonet-l@mtu.edu

BRYONET

Jenny,

I have a misting system at home, for a Dicksonia antarctica. It
mists 12x1minute/day, tap water (soft Manchester) as it comes,
and it yields a fine crop of odd volunteer bryophytes including
Heteroscyphus combinatus and an unidentifiable Lophocolea not
too far from L. semiteres that fruits well -- but maybe these are
more tolerant of chlorine or whatever than other species. Quite a bit
of the chlorine is possibly lost in the misting, though not things like
heavy metals? Fluoride should make the peristome teeth strong. I
use almost no nutrient additions, occasionally by hand-spraying.

Think of the mossy borders that thrive under regular garden
sprinklers, though again these may be more tolerant species.

Sean

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sean R. Edwards BSc PhD,
Keeper of Botany,
The Manchester Museum, Manchester University, Manchester M13 9PL, UK
'Phone: +44 (0)161-275-2671/2; fax: +44 (0)161-275-2676
Email: sean.edwards@man.ac.uk
Website: http://www.museum.man.ac.uk/