Where to get moss? Prevent mold?

[HaleyM]

So I have a Red Eyed Crocodile Skink which requires the same habitat layout as a dart frog or maybe say a salamander.
The problem I have been having is mold on my moss. Also a decent place to get moss in the first place! I live in FL which has no place for me to get safe moss outside. And there is no stores around that sell decent ferns or mosses.
Also I simply have no idea what kinds of mosses to get! Or how to prevent mold which is just terrible for my asthma.

So where does everyone here get their plants? And how do you prevent mold?
​

 

[Chinadog]

I get nearly all my plants/ferns/mosses both aquatic and terrestrial from ebay or other online suppliers. Compared to shop bought stuff the quality is far, far better and the price is almost always lower.
Regarding the mould problem I can only suggest increasing ventilation, but I don't have any dart frogs, so I don't know if that's possible or not. It might be worth doing a thorough clean out of the set up and sterilising or replacing the substrate and decorations before replanting with new ferns/mosses.

 

[FrogEyes]

There are thousands of species of moss, and may even be dozens present in the space of a few square feet. They often have specific and widely differing requirements for lighting, pH, moisture, and even particular minerals or substrata. Sphagnum, for example, may have several species in the space of a few inches, with one species completely under water, and others progressively higher and further above the water surface. This is why mosses often mold in a terrarium - the habitat is wrong, and they die. The trick is to find species which prefer high nutrient, high moisture, low light conditions. Some of the prettiest species that are abundantly available thrive in humid but well-drained conifer forests, on dry, acidic substrates in low light...so they die. You can certainly find samples outdoors, and if they survive they should spread. My main concern would be pathogens, such as fungi, which happen to thrive in natural habitats similar to where "terrarium" mosses will grow. I prefer to collect well away from amphibian habitats, but warm temperatures can eradicate some of the known pathogens. Look for a variety of forms from a variety of microhabitats, but especially those similar to the cage environment. Then see what grows. Anything you succeed with, you may have a market for! Otherwise, aquatic mosses from nature or the pet store will often do well, even on land, and there are also frog and exotic plant dealers in the USA and online who can provide suitable tropical species.

 

[Fumanchu]

I have some Java moss you can have, unjust needs a small pool of water or heavy moisture.