Mossy Activities and Makes
At the dawn of time, moss was the first plant to venture out of the sea and onto the barren land. Over millions of years, mosses trapped energy and buried carbon deep beneath the surface, transforming our planet into a place where life could thrive.
Moss grows in the cracks, at the edges and in the shadows. Look closely and you will discover a truly wild place on your doorstep.
Each tiny moss reveals skills for using energy well and successful living. Persistence, resilience, simplicity, adaptability. From mosses we gain hope as they return carbon to the earth.
There is so much to learn from nature. Though small, moss tells us that tiny actions can make a big difference. When we work together, we can bring abundance back to abandoned places.
Look at Moss
Watch this short video to join Art and Energy’s Naomi for a stroll to look at mosses, then pop on your shoes and go a mossy exploration of your own. You may want to take a magnifying glass to look closely, alternatively a camera with a zoom can help you to look closer.
How many different shaped leaflets can you find?
What’s the most unusual place you can see moss growing?
Push your fingers down deep into the moss, think of how long these tiny plants have been using the suns energy to turn carbon dioxide into new growth!
Draw Moss
Whilst you’re out on your moss hunt, take along some paper and drawing materials to make a visual record of the what you find. Try not to worry about it being a work of art - drawing gives us an opportunity to slow down and observe, to relax our brains, to share our observations with others, and to see the world differently.
When we say ‘drawing materials’ this can be really varied… pencil, charcoal, crayons, pastels… use what you have to hand and see what works for you.
You could use our mossy activity sheet to help you look closely at moss and draw the shapes you see.
This activity is on page 16 of our publication ‘Be More Moss : A Mossellany of Questions for Life’
Make a jam jar terrarium
Imagine a reminder so beautiful it's like a work of art. It can nudge us to remember our planet and why we need to protect it.
Use a glass jar and loo roll from your recycling bin, plus some moss and soil from outside to create a precious eco-reminder for your windowsill. Add a little rainwater, then seal and enjoy! Find full instructions on page 22 of our publication ‘Be More Moss : A Mossellany of Questions for Life’
When foraging for your materials remember that we don’t want to cause damage to the natural world.
Where possible look to rehome moss from an area where it’s at risk already - for example from a path or gutter where it’s unwanted (with property owners permission).
Check that the site you’re taking from is not a protected area (In UK a SSSI).
Choose somewhere with lots of moss and take only the tiniest amount - You only need a little as the moss will grow!
Looking even closer
We took some moss samples to the Plymouth Electron Microscopy Centre at the University of Plymouth. This short video shows just a few of the amazing images we came away with. We will never look at mosses in the same way again!
We’ve put together this publication for anyone who likes to ponder, doodle and have new ideas - we invite you to draw on your imagination and get creative with this miscellany of facts and quotes about marvellous mosses, with activity pages waiting for your pen and stories of our past and future.
We've designed this book so that it can be used on your own, or as a group activity. It's full of moss-inspired activities and prompts that help people bypass eco-anxiety and think about things in their lives that are relevant to responding to the climate and ecological emergency. It's suitable for teenagers, young adults, older persons, parents or grandparents.
View your free digital copy here
Be More Moss is available to purchase for £15 which includes UK postage. Please contact us if you’d like to purchase multiple copies or require worldwide postage: hello@artandenergy.org
Be More Moss has been printed with a small print run, on recycled paper using plant-based inks and using 100% renewable energy.
When his class is learning about climate change, Jay imagines a carbon giant instead. Little does he know that this daydream is the start of a very big, very small adventure into the magical world of moss.
Join Jay as he travels with his Nana on an unforgettable journey, featuring dancing tardigrades, sleeping giants and the small things we can all do to build a brighter, greener future.
Written by Micha Colombo. Graphic design by Devon Tipping.
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The story has been inspired by the How to Bury the Giant project, with themes of mosses, climate action, giants and tiny actions for a brighter greener future. Our thanks to Micha for her fabulous story.
You can also listen to Micha reading A Mossy Story here. We’ve made this audio version freely available to you because we believe that everyone should be supported to take creative steps towards a brighter greener future.
Inspired by Micha’s words, a group from the University of Plymouth Illustration BA and MA took part in The Mossy Book illustration event. This has lead to the beautiful illustrations in this publication, with Devon Tipping and Mikayla Schuler bringing the story to life with their beautiful illustrations.
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Includes free UK postage (2nd Class Royal Mail).
Please contact us if you’d like to purchase multiple copies or require worldwide postage: hello@artandenergy.org
The Mossy Story has been printed with a small print run, on 100% recycled paper, using vegan friendly, biodegradable and compostable inks and using 100% renewable energy.
Be More Moss: A Mossellany of Questions for Life
There are lots more moss inspired activities in our publication, ‘Be More Moss: A Mossellany of Questions for Life’. You can view this for free as a digital book, or you might choose to purchase a paper copy and use it as a project book to work through to delve further into the wonderful world of moss, and how we can be creative in our response to the climate emergency. Find out more here.
We hope you’ve enjoyed a moss-inspired activity or two. Now you might like to…
Find out more Mossy Facts
Continue getting creative by joining in with the Mossy Make.
Tell the Tardigrade about the moss-like actions you’re taking for a better future.