Transcript Club Mosses
CLUB MOSSES Marisa Ramunas Gabriel Dominguez Period 8 – Biology The History of the Club Moss Ancient club mosses grew into huge trees (up to 35 meters in height) and some grew into what is now some of the Earth’s first forest. The fossilized remains of these tress exist today as large beds of coal. Now… Club mosses are small plants that live in moist woodlands located near streams and marshes. Members of the genus Lycopodium (common club moss) look like mini pine trees. This picture shows how club mosses look now a days. Basics Common Name: Club Moss Scientific Name: Lycopodium spp Family: Clubmoss (Lycopodiaceae) Other Common Names: Ground Pine, Club Pine, ground cedar, and running pine Habitat: Moist, shaded woodlands General Bloom Dates: June - September About the Club Moss Club Mosses have horizontal branching stems, both underground and above. These stems will send up shoots that will hold the flowering portion of the plant. These plants produce spores in a cone like structure at the end of the stem. Once the spores germinate, they develop into a "thallus" which then produce male and female egg cells. These cells then reproduce to form the new plant. This process can take up to 20 years. Seedless Vascular Plants Club mosses are seedless vascular plants meaning that these plants do not produce seeds, so the seeds are dispersed with the wind. These club mosses have true roots, steams, and leaves. Club mosses are said to be very similar to the earliest vascular plants. They have small scalelike leaves, homosporous spores borne in sporangia at the bases of the leaves, branching stems, and generally have a simple form. Structure of a Club Moss Stobilus - Is a structure present on most plant species consisting of leaf-like, sporangia-bearing structures densely aggregated along a stem. (AKA – Cones) Horizontal Stem – Are what produce roots at frequent intervals along their length, allowing the stem to grow indefinitely along the ground. Adventitious Root – It arise out-ofsequence from the more usual root formation of branches of a primary root, and instead it originate from the stem, branches, leaves, or old woody roots. Facts There are 400 species of Club Mosses. They are considered to be “cosmopolitan” meaning that they can live in the arctic and in the tropics. The spores of club mosses were once used to coat pills. More Facts :D Even though club mosses have the word moss in them, doesn’t mean that they are considered mosses. They are actually considered to be plants. In Europe, the club mosses used to help with kidney and bladder disorders. They were also used to produce fireworks.