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I used to think all moss was bad for trees
For years I would scrape moss off every oak and maple on my property in Portland. I thought it was suffocating the bark or stealing nutrients. Then last fall an arborist doing a hazard assessment told me to stop, said moss is actually harmless and even beneficial for the canopy ecosystem. He showed me how the moss holds moisture and creates microhabitats for insects. I wasted maybe 40 hours over 5 years fighting something that wasn't even a problem. Has anyone else had a similar wake-up call about a common gardening myth?
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