Evaluating moss diversity and biomass for sustainable harvesting methods in semi-arid forests of Turkey

In Turkey, it is legal to harvest moss from designated areas; however, the lack of comprehensive inventory studies in these harvested zones poses a significant threat to moss species. Harvesting without proper inventories can negatively impact rare, sensitive, and even endemic species in the region. Furthermore, research on the sustainable amount of moss harvestable per hectare in forested areas is severely lacking. The goal of this study, which covered 4,200 hectares on Eldivan Mountain, was to close the significant gap in moss inventory and sustainable harvesting methods. Sampling was conducted every 300-meters, measuring mosses in four m² ground plots and 50 m² tree plots. The total area covered by the identified moss species was approximately 97,216,557 m², with a total dry weight of 44,640,972 kilograms. The most widespread ground species, Syntrichia ruralis (Hedw.) F. Weber & D. Mohr, covered 64,772,801 m² with a dry weight of 623,268 kilograms, while the dominant tree species, Hypnum cupressiforme var. lacunosum Brid., covered 3,937,266 m² with a dry weight of 1,448,533 kilograms. The research determines that the collection of epiphytic mosses is unsustainable, owing to insufficient rainfall in Turkey's semi-arid areas. We recommend a sustainable harvest rate of 1-1.5 tons per hectare for ground mosses to balance ecological conservation with commercial objectives. These findings furnish critical information for conservation strategies and the formulation of sustainable moss harvesting methodologies.