You’d think it’s basically a pole made of moss, and you’d be right… some of the time.
These days it’s a loose term used in the horticultural space to describe any vertical pole designed to support plants with some sort of fibrous material.
Moss is still used for sure, but these days coco coir poles are probably more common.
As you might expect, climbing vines are the prime candidates for attaching to moss poles.
Aroids (e.g. Monstera, Philodendron and Pothos) and similar tropical epiphytic species are a common choice, but anything that’s used to climbing trees is going to appreciate a moss pole.
It’s all about replicating their natural environment and supporting the plants – physically and figuratively – so they can become their best plant selves.
Benefits of a Moss Pole
- They provide support for epiphytic plants to grow upwards. The aerial roots of vining species can easily attach to the fibrous material, securing the plant and encouraging its growth.
- They can supply moisture to the plant. Moss poles are always made with a water retentive material, so watering/spraying the pole will allow it to store some moisture for the plants’ aerial roots to access.
- They often help plants progress through to maturity. Taller plants think they’re closer to the sunlight at the top of the rainforest canopy and make changes to capitalize on that. Potentially leading to larger plants, larger leaves, fenestrations and more.
- They’re a space efficient solution. I get it, we’re all low on counter space for new plants, but climbing plants can be trained to occupy vertical space instead of horizontal.
- They can make unruly plants look really good. We’ve all got that one vining species that looks like all stem and no foliage sometimes. By integrating the stem of the plant with the central pole, it visually removes the stem and highlights the foliage.
- You can increase shape the plant to increase the density of the foliage. By wrapping the plant around a moss pole, you’re able to effectively bring leaves closer together – shaping the plants’ foliage as you see fit. Though our Rhaphidophora tetrasperma here has such a thick / stiff stem it’s not easy to wrap around the pole.
