Zoo Med New Zealand Sphagnum Moss Substrate Review

Zoo Med’s New Zealand Sphagnum Moss is soft and holds many times its weight in water. That means it will help keep the air in your box turtle’s home humidified longer. It lasts longer than many other substrate choices and is even washable and re-usable! If you have live plants in your turtle’s pen, it’s also good for putting around the base of the plants. It’s best used with other bedding materials rather than on its own.

As a bonus, it’s sustainably harvested so you’re not hurting the environment by using it.

Learn more about New Zealand Sphagnum Moss:

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. Sizes Ease of Use Compare to other Mosses
. Safety Pros & Cons Check Prices

Sizes of Zoo Med Sphagnum Moss

This substrate comes in two sizes, according to Zoo Med:

80 in3 (1.31 dm3)
0.33 lb (150 g) (sold at PetSmart and Buy.com)

It’s made in New Zealand (that explains the name!)

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Ease of Use/How to Use Sphagnum Moss Substrate

This moss is dried and compressed in the bag. It expands when you get it wet, which is what you want to do before using it. Just soak it in a bucket of clean water, squeezing it to help it absorb the water. Wring it out so that it is just damp before putting it in your turtle’s cage.

It provides a soft, carpet-like layer over any other substrate of your choice, for example Eco Earth coconut fiber bedding. You really do need another substrate under it so your pet has something to burrow into. It’s a great addition to any part of the habitat, but around the water dish it can help to absorb spills so the rest of the substrate doesn’t get soaked.

New Zealand Sphagnum Moss is also simple to clean and reuse. The process is similar to wetting it for the first use. Just put it in some clean water and swirl it around, then wring it out. Do this a few times, until the moss looks and smells clean. According to Zoo Med, you should be able to clean it three or four times before you need to replace it with new moss. Of course, if it smells bad and you can’t get rid of the smell by cleaning, replace it sooner.

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Comparison to Other Types of Mosses

According to ZooMed, this moss “holds more water and stays moist longer than any other type of moss.” Most reviewers seem to agree that it helps keep humidity high longer and needs misting less often than other products.

It’s apparently also cleaner than some other mosses, according to other reviewers.

The down side seems to be that it’s more expensive than many others. But since it can be cleaned and reused, it may actually last longer, making it cheaper in the long run.

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Is Sphagnum Moss Safe for Box Turtles?

Moss is very safe to use with box turtles. It’s soft, so it won’t scratch them. It’s a natural plant material, so it’s safe to eat. And this product has no chemicals added that could be dangerous.

In fact, box turtle experts often recommend moss as one of the elements of a well-landscaped box turtle habitat.

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New Zealand Sphagnum Moss Pros & Cons Summary

NZ Sphagnum Moss

I WANT IT!

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Overall, this product has many more positive qualities than negative ones.

Pros:

Helps maintain humidity because it can hold as much as 20 times its weight in water
You won’t have to fuss with misting as much, because it stays moist longer than other substrates
Doesn’t decompose like other substrates
Resists molding (very important in humid habitats!)
Doesn’t stick to wet pets

product name cons Cons:

More expensive than other mosses

People who use it mostly love it. And even concern about the price is minimized because one package lasts a long time.

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Check Price and Availability

The links here are for the larger, .33 lb bags. As of this writing, this seems to be the only size PetSmart and Rakuten shopping (Buy.com) sell. It’s also the size you’re most likely to want for all but the smallest habitat.