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Selaginella moellendorffii
Gemmiferous spikemoss is a small lycophyte, a non-flowering vascular plant related to ferns, and a major model organism in plant genomics research. It is grown mainly as a specimen for study or collectors, and needs humid, shaded, moist conditions similar to a forest floor.
Selaginella moellendorffii is a lycophyte that is an important model organism, especially in comparative genomics. S. moellendorffii is a member of an ancient vascular plant lineage that first appeared in the fossil record some 400 million years ago. They would later form a dominant part of the world's flora during the Carboniferous period. They have a number of unusual and/or "primitive" features, such as rudimentary leaves (microphylls), ubiquitous dichotomous branching, heterospory, and the ligule. As the earliest diverging group of modern vascular plants, they are essential to understanding the evolution of plants as a whole.
Selaginella moellendorffii is native to subtropical Asia and grows in moist, shaded forest floors. It is commonly found in low-elevation broadleaf forests, including those in Taiwan. The species exhibits moderate desiccation tolerance, allowing it to persist in fluctuating environments.
Meadow spikemoss · Selaginella bryopteris · Lesser spikemoss · Krauss's Clubmoss · Flower of stone · Lesser Clubmoss · Blue spikemoss · Willdenow's spikemoss · Spikemoss
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Selaginella moellendorffii by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
