I remember the days when moss was the enemy. The idea was that moss impeded water penetration, or kept the pot too wet. So it was a surprise when I was an apprentice that Mr. Suzuki encouraged moss to grow on the soil, and I discovered there were some advantages to having it there.

Shredded sphagnum moss on top of volcanic soil (akadama/pumice) at 1/8-1/4″ thickness, with shredded live moss added to inoculate. I often add ink to it so it’s not straw colored while the moss gets established. Be sure you use true sphagnum moss, not peat moss. Peat moss is rotted sphagnum, and tends to be water repellent when dry. The best sphagnum to use is sold often as ‘orchid’ moss, and is straw colored and is like a sponge when sprinkled with water.

If applied in the early spring around repotting time, a carpet of live moss…

Translated from Edo Tokyo Kaii Hyakumonogatari

In Kanda, in the vicinity of the town of Mikawa, there was a man named Kichigoro.  One late, rainy night he was out running errands for his business when he passed by through the gate leading to Sujikai bridge.  There he saw a young boy, about five or six years old, shuffling along the path.

“That is a brave kid to be out like this in the middle of the night…Hey, were are you going?

He asked the young boy, and when the boy turned his face in answer, he saw a face with a swarthy completion, eyes the color of blood and a mouth that stretched across his face from ear to ear.

Kichigoro was generally a brave man and so even this was not enough to shock him.  But when he stretched his neck to take a closer look, the strange creature suddenly jumped into…