Sterilizing moss

[JoshBA]

I'd like to try a few different temperate mosses in one of my vivariums, but because these will be harvested from the wild, I'm trying to find the best way to sterilize them. I've heard that a diluted bleach dip will often kill mosses, and I'd rather not work with a chemical that we want to keep out of our tanks. In nature, many temperate moss naturally dry out, so would drying them out for a few weeks help get rid of diseases? Also, any species near where I live would completely freeze in the winter. So I thought that first drying them out then freezing them would sufficiently kill any harmful bacteria or pathogens.
I also recently discovered that many of the commonly available sheet mosses for sale at vivarium supply stores are just harvested from the wild (in subtropical areas like the Southern United states). Would these species be able to tolerate both drying and freezing?

 

[Yahilles]

If you want a sterile environment, why use moss at all? Better keep your newts on paper towel, a guarantee there will be no organisms in your tank other than the ones you put there...

Man, moss is a natural part of newt habitat. Just go out to the forest far from roads and industry/agriculture and collect some, then wash it with water (remove bigger bugs and stuff like that if appears) and you can put it in the vivarium just like anyone else does. I'd avoid pet store mosses, in one case a friend lost a whole lot of sals which were shipped in such moss.