Clubmosses
What are they?
Clubmosses are a primitive group of plants that reproduce by spores, usually produced in cone-like structures at the tips of the stems. Indeed, the whole plant can look conifer-like, with the reproductive cones borne at the ends of stems bearing conifer-like leaves. There are two basic groups - those that tend to creep along the ground and those that stand upright like miniature conifers.
Where are they found?
Clubmosses almost invariably occur in damp soils with some species on open, sandy or peaty bogs and others in woodland. Boggy areas that dry up in summer may also have clubmosses, but on such sites, the clubmosses dry out in the hot summer months and wither, making them very difficult, sometimes impossible, to identify to species.
Identification
Plants bearing spores are generally relatively easy to identify, due to differences in the spore-bearing structures; at other times of the year, some species can be very difficult to identify.
Foxtail Clubmoss Lycopodiella alopecuroides
A common species of acid bogs and wet hollows in the north of the county, occasional elsewhere. Mature spores July to October. Trailing stems are often very long and arching and are interwoven into surrounding vegetation, especially sphagnum mosses. Upright, spore-bearing branches are well furnished with leaves that stick out at right angles to the stem and give the whole plant a 'foxtail' look.
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Southern Bog Clubmoss Lycopodiella appressa
(Marsh Clubmoss) An uncommon but widespread species of wetter soils, especially in the north of the county. Mature spores July to October. Very similar to Foxtail Clubmoss but trailing stems are most often flat to the ground rather than arching and leaves on upright, spore-bearing branches are carried closer to the stem.
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Slender Clubmoss Pseudolycopodiella caroliniana
A rare species of old, undisturbed peat bogs in the north of Cape May County. A distinctive species with leafy, fern-like growths.
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Obscure Clubmoss Lycopodium obscurum
Widespread and common in damp woodland, sometimes forming extensive colonies of upright stems. Mature spores July to October. A rather distinctive species, the underground stems sending up shoots that look like little, flat-topped conifers. Leaflets more spreading than in the Diphasiastrum species.
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Fan Clubmoss Diphasiastrum digitatum
(Ground-pine) A scarce species of damp, leafy, woodland soils in the northern half of the county. Mature spores July to September. Similar to Obscure Clubmoss but leaves are bright lime-green rather than dull moss-green.
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