Running Clubmoss: The Ancient Groundcover That’s Older Than Dinosaurs
Meet running clubmoss (Lycopodium clavatum), a fascinating plant that’s been carpeting forest floors for over 400 million years! This isn’t your typical garden plant – it’s actually a living fossil that belongs to an ancient group called lycopods, which predate flowering plants by hundreds of millions of years.
What Exactly Is Running Clubmoss?
Despite its common name, running clubmoss isn’t actually a moss at all. It’s a lycopod – a type of vascular plant that reproduces through spores rather than seeds or flowers. This perennial evergreen creates dense, carpet-like mats that run along the ground through horizontal stems, hence the name. The plant produces distinctive club-shaped structures called strobili that release clouds of spores when mature.
Where You’ll Find This Ancient Wonder
Running clubmoss is impressively widespread, native to Alaska, Canada, the lower 48 states, and even Puerto Rico. You can spot it growing naturally across most of North America, from British Columbia to Newfoundland, and from California to Georgia. It’s one of those rare plants that seems to have conquered nearly every suitable habitat on the continent!
This adaptable species thrives in various wetland conditions too. Depending on your region, it can be found in both wetlands and uplands, showing remarkable flexibility in its habitat preferences.
What Does Running Clubmoss Look Like?
Identifying running clubmoss is easier than you might think. Look for these key features:
- Low-growing, evergreen mats that rarely exceed a few inches in height
- Tiny, needle-like leaves that overlap like scales along creeping stems
- Distinctive club-shaped spore cones (strobili) held on upright stalks
- Dense, carpet-like growth pattern that spreads horizontally
- Bright green color that persists year-round
Is It Beneficial for Your Garden?
Here’s where things get interesting – and a bit challenging. While running clubmoss is undeniably beautiful and ecologically important, it’s notoriously difficult to cultivate in home gardens. This ancient plant has very specific requirements and depends on complex relationships with soil fungi that are hard to replicate in typical garden settings.
However, if you’re lucky enough to have it growing naturally on your property, consider yourself blessed! It provides excellent erosion control, creates habitat for small creatures, and adds a unique prehistoric touch to naturalized areas.
Growing Conditions and Care
If you’re determined to try growing running clubmoss, here’s what it needs:
- Hardiness: Thrives in USDA zones 3-8
- Light: Partial to full shade
- Soil: Acidic, well-draining, with good organic content
- Moisture: Consistent moisture but not waterlogged conditions
- Special needs: Requires specific soil fungi partnerships
Honestly, your best bet is to encourage any existing populations on your property rather than trying to establish new ones. If you don’t have running clubmoss naturally, consider appreciating it during woodland walks instead!
The Bottom Line
Running clubmoss is more of a lucky to have plant than a plant to grow species. Its ancient lineage and unique appearance make it a fascinating addition to any natural landscape, but its cultivation requirements put it firmly in the admire from afar category for most gardeners. If you spot it in the wild, take a moment to appreciate this living connection to Earth’s ancient past – you’re looking at a plant whose ancestors watched the dinosaurs come and go!
