Before DEET: Discover how the pioneers dealt with biting insects. Part 4. Ball Moss

Ball moss (Tillandsia recurvata) is the last maligned plant in our presentation that deserves a deeper look. And though documentation for it is sparse, I still want to relate to you the stories I grew up hearing. Maybe someday somebody like you will spend the time to analyze whether there was anything to the stories.

The night before they were to work livestock, they’d get a bunch of ball moss and fill a big pot like packing a washing machine. Then they’d get something heavy to weigh the moss down, and fill the pot with water. Set it next to the fire and let it come to a boil then pull it off the fire and let it cool overnight. In the morning, take a washcloth bath with the water. It’d keep the biting flies and gnats off you until you sweat it off. They’d keep the pot handy for a “freshening up” as the day wore on. The boiled wet moss was thrown on the fire to keep flies, gnats, and mosquitoes generally out of the area.