Club Spikemoss: The Tiny Ancient Plant That’s Older Than Dinosaurs
Meet club spikemoss (Selaginella selaginoides), a fascinating little plant that looks like moss but isn’t actually moss at all! This tiny green wonder is what botanists call a lycopod or clubmoss – part of an ancient group of plants that has been around for over 400 million years. That means these little guys were carpeting the forest floor long before the first dinosaurs took their first steps.
What Exactly Is Club Spikemoss?
Club spikemoss is a perennial forb that grows as a low, creeping mat across the ground. Unlike true mosses, it’s a vascular plant with tiny roots and specialized tissues for moving water and nutrients around. The plant produces delicate, scale-like leaves that give it a soft, feathery appearance, and it spreads by sending out runners that hug the ground.
What makes this plant particularly special is how it reproduces – instead of flowers and seeds, club spikemoss produces spores in small, cone-like structures called strobili. These tiny clubs give the plant its common name and appear at the tips of some branches.
Where Club Spikemoss Calls Home
This hardy little plant is native to some pretty impressive places! Club spikemoss naturally occurs across Alaska, Canada, Greenland, and extends south into the northern United States. You can find it growing wild in states like Colorado, Idaho, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, Wisconsin, and Wyoming, as well as throughout most Canadian provinces and territories.
The plant thrives in cool, northern climates and is incredibly cold-hardy, making it perfectly suited for USDA hardiness zones 2-6.
Identifying Club Spikemoss in the Wild
Spotting club spikemoss requires a keen eye since it’s quite small – typically forming mats just a few inches tall. Here’s what to look for:
- Low-growing, mat-forming habit that spreads along the ground
- Tiny, overlapping scale-like leaves arranged in four rows along the stems
- Yellow-green to bright green coloration
- Small, club-shaped reproductive structures (strobili) at branch tips
- Preference for moist to wet soils in cool locations
Wetland Connections
One interesting characteristic of club spikemoss is its relationship with water. Depending on where you find it, this plant can be quite the shape-shifter when it comes to moisture preferences:
- In Alaska: Usually found in non-wetland areas but can tolerate some wetness
- In the Arid West, Northcentral, Northeast, and Western Mountain regions: Typically grows in wetlands but can adapt to drier conditions
This flexibility makes it a valuable indicator species for understanding local ecosystem conditions.
Is Club Spikemoss Beneficial for Your Garden?
While club spikemoss won’t provide nectar for butterflies or berries for birds (since it doesn’t flower or fruit), it does offer some unique benefits for specialized garden situations:
- Ground cover: Creates interesting textural contrast in rock gardens or alpine plantings
- Naturalistic landscapes: Perfect for recreating native northern ecosystems
- Low maintenance: Once established, requires minimal care
- Historical interest: Adds an ancient element to your landscape story
Growing Conditions and Care
If you’re lucky enough to live in club spikemoss territory and want to encourage it in your landscape, here’s what it needs:
- Moisture: Consistent moisture is key – it prefers moist to wet soils
- Temperature: Cool conditions are essential; it’s not suited for warm climates
- Light: Adapts to partial shade or full sun
- Soil: Tolerates various soil types as long as moisture needs are met
The Bottom Line
Club spikemoss is definitely a specialty plant that won’t work in every garden, but for the right situation, it’s absolutely fascinating. If you live in its native range and have cool, moist conditions to offer, this ancient little plant can add a unique prehistoric touch to rock gardens, bog gardens, or naturalistic landscapes. Just remember – you’re not just growing a plant, you’re cultivating a living piece of Earth’s ancient history!
While it may not be the showiest addition to your garden, club spikemoss offers something few other plants can: a direct connection to the distant past and a reminder of the incredible diversity of plant life on our planet.
