Scientific Name:
Bryophyta
(Division)
Pronunciation:
bri-oh-PHIT-ah
Common Name:
moss
Family Name:
(various)
Plant Type:
Weed (horticultural)
Key ID Features:
Microphylls of most species are between 1-12mm long and 1-3mm wide, veins absent but most have a midrib-like "costa"; capsules 2-5mm long x ~1mm wide, each form at the tips of the seta or stalk and initially has a pointy covering (the calyptra).
Habit:
Horizontal, Irregular, Spreading
Form:
Creeping / Mat-like
Texture:
Fine
Mature Height:
< 0.1m
Mature Spread:
< 0.1m
Growth Rate:
Slow
Origin:
North America
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 2: (-46 to -40 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun only if soil kept moist, Part sun/part shade, Filtered shade, Deep shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Landscape Uses:
Rock garden
Additional Info:
Google. Lawn moss can either be controlled or nurtured like in Japanese gardens.
Common local species in lawns include
Atrichum selwynii (Polytrichaceae),
Brachythecium rutabulum (Brachytheciaceae),
Calliergonella cuspidata (Amblystegiaceae),
Ceratodon purpureus (Ditrichaceae),
Eurhynchium praelongum (Brachytheciaceae),
Funaria hygrometrica (Funariaceae), and
Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus (Hylocomiaceae).
Important species mined from peat bogs and used in growing media include
Sphagnum and
Hypnum
See Wikipedia for moss family characteristics.
Common moss-like liverworts in lawns include Plagiomnium spp. (Mniaceae).
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple
Arrangement:
Spiraled
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Colour in Fall:
Green
Shapes:
Ovate, Other
Apices:
Acute
Bases:
Truncate
Margins:
Entire
Additional Info:
referred to as 'microphylls'
Inflorescence Type:
Flower Morphology:
Dioecious plant
Colour (petals):
No flowers
Flower Time at Peak:
Fruit Type:
Capsule, Sporangium (spores)
Fruit Colour:
Green, Brown
Fruiting Time:
May, Jun, Jul
Bark or Stem Colour:
Pest Susceptibility:
(Pest resistant, Disease resistant)
