Myth: Moss Grows On The North Side Of Trees
- Survival Situation: Lost Using Nature Navigation
Moss has often been used as a big part of survival material in cartoons and pop culture over the years. They will often claim that moss grows on the north side of trees, so you’ll always know where north is due to that. However, this is one of the survival myths you need to try to forget. Moss is a weird thing, but it’s like a lot of plants in this world. It likes to be wherever the sun and therefore warmth happens to show up the most. This means it could not possibly always grow on the north side of a tree because there is no guarantee it’ll get sun on the north side.
It seems this myth likely began in a place where moss happened to grow on the north side a lot. Therefore, it was a common trick to use in that particular area and only that area. However, it then began to be common practice elsewhere, leading us to the myth we see now. It is likely that moss would grow on the north side of a tree if in an open enough area where all sides of a tree had equal access to the sun. Yet it would likely also grow all around the tree at that point. Basically, if you are trying to use moss as a navigation trick when lost, you might be helped by it or you might be lost further. Try to follow water sources, they are more reliable.