Order Lycopodiales

Order Lycopodiales

Clubmosses (Order Lycopodiales) are small plants with creeping and upright stems covered with tiny leaves. Their common name probably comes from the fact that they are low-growing and green, rather like mosses. They produce yellow spores, often in cones at the tips of some stems. Each spore may grow into a tiny mass of tissue (gametophyte), which develops male and female sexual structures. This stage in the life cycle is thought to be years long but as the gametophytes are so very small and often underground, they are difficult to study. MORE! [CH] {FG}