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Not-flowering plants, algae, moss, liverworts, ferns, Ginkgo.
School Science Lessons
2025-07-09
(UNBiolN2NotFlow)
Not-flowering plants
Contents
Classification: Divisions
9.1.0 Anthocerotophyta, Hornworts
9.2.0 Bryophyta, Mosses
9.3.0 Charophyta, Stoneworts
9.4.0 Chlorophyta, Algae
9.5.0 Cycadophyta, Cycads
9.6.0 Ginkgophyta, (Ginkgo biloba)
9.7.0 Gnetophyta, Gnetophytes
9.8.0 Gymnosperms, Gymnospermae
9.9.0 Lycophyta, Clubmosses
9.10.0 Marchantiophyta, Liverworts
9.11.0 Pteridophyta
9.12.0 Pinophyta, Conifers
9.1.0 Phylum Anthocerotophyta, Hornworts
Hornworts have a simple gametophyte and a long horn-like sporophyte.
Field hornwort, (Anthoceros agrestis), thin dark green thallus like a rosette, up to 1.5 cm in diameter, hollows contain cylindrical spore-producing bodies,
which release the black spores, Europe, Family Anthocerotaceae
See diagram: (Anthoceros agrestis)
Dendroceros, (Dendroceros japonicus), ("tree horn"), dark green flat ribbon-like thallus with branches and a midrib, up to 10 cm long, cylindrical sporophytes,
widely distributed in moist environments, Taiwan, Japan, Family Dendrocerotaceae
Smooth hornwort, (Phaeoceros leavis), up to 5 mm, dark green thallus, grows in moist areas, Family Notothyladaceae
Phaeoceros leavis, BBS, UK
9.2.0 Bryophyta, Mosses
Mosses online, Australia
See diagram 9.47.2: Moss life cycle.
Mosses have an upright or creeping gametophyte with leaves arranges spirally.
The sporophyte has a tough seta that persists after spore dispersal.
In open country, moss grows mostly on the north side of trees in the Northern Hemisphere and on the south side of trees in the Southern Hemisphere.
Mosses grow 1-10 cm tall in clumps or mats in shady or damp locations.
Some grow on trees, fences and walls.
Mosses have multicellular rhizoids and distinct stems and leaves.
Mosses have an upright or creeping gametophyte with leaves arranged spirally.
If the sex organs are developed on different plants, as with Dawsonia, the antheridia are attached to a cup-like receptacle at the apex of the male plant.
The antheridia burst to release sperm that use their two cilia to swim in rain water to the archegonia at the apex of the female plants and fertilize the ova.
The zygote grows vertically into the sporophyte that remains attached to the female plant and consists of a long stalk, seta and a capsule containing the sporogonium.
The mature capsule will release very light spores to be dispersed by the wind and grow into the next gametophyte generation.
Moss experiments
Common cord-moss, (Funaria hygrometrica), little goldilocks, golden maidenhair moss, bonfire moss, up to 3 cm,
obovate leaves forms a bulb-like cluster at the top of a long stem, male and female organs on the same plant, red-brown
sporophyte is a long twisting seta with an asymmetrical grooved capsule at the tip so easy to find and identify,
grows in wet soil, damp rock crevices, disturbed ground, very common in plant nurseries, is widely distributed.
See diagram 9.47.1: Funaria, sporogonium.
Juniper haircap moss, (Polytrichum juniperinum), juniper polytrichum moss, evergreen perennial, red stems, grey-green
leaves with red-brown tip, dioecious, grow in thin interwoven mats, capsule of sporophyte has long hanging hairs so "haircap moss"
system of tiny tubes for carrying water from the rhizoids to leaves, widely distributed, but not usually in moist or wet environments
9.3.0 Division Charophyta, Stoneworts
Stoneworts are branched multicellular algae that have no flower, wll not extend above the water surface, light to dark green in color
with forked, bushy branches.
Common stonewort, (Chara vulgaris), (Linnaeus 1753), Chara, (Greek charaties graceful, 'the three graces')
It is called “muskgrass”, because of its musky earthy odour) and called “stonewort”, because of the deposition of rough to touch marl,
calcium carbonate, on its epidermis.
It is a freshwater giant green algae with structures like stems and leaves, so looks like a higher plant.
It was used for investigation of fundamental physiological processes, because its large internodal cells manipulated to generate action
potentials in response to mechanical stimulation or direct electrical stimulation, leading to study of mechanisms of excitability.
It was used to study rapid cytoplasmic streaming and gravitropism.
Smooth stonewort, (Nitella flexilis), freshwater algae, axes up to 1m, and 1 mm wide, large cell sie, is cultivated in the laboratory, branched, Family Characeae.
It has no odour and are soft to the touch, unlike (Chara vulgaris).
Both Nitella and Chara are cultured in Biology classes to observe protoplasmic streaming and other processes in these large cells.
Biology classes
9.4.0 Chlorophyta, Algae
Chlorophytes have green chloroplasts for photosynthesis, may be single cells, colonies and filaments, and have grass-green colour.
See diagram 9.39.1: Filamentous algae
Species
9.4.1 Chlamydomonas, Chlorophyta Division
9.4.2 Closterium setaceum, desmid, Chlorophyta Division
9.4.3 Codium tomentosum, Chlorophyta Division
9.4.4 Chlorella vulgaris, Chlorophyta Division
9.4.5 Chondrus crispus, Chlorophyta Division
9.4.6 Ecklonia, Sargassum, Phaeophyta Division
9.4.7 Hormosira banksii, Phaeophyceae
6.5.7 Microalgae
9.4.8 Pleodorina , Chlorophyta Division
9.4.9 Pleurococcus, (Protococcus), Chlorophyta Division
9.4.10 Sphaerella, (Haematococcus), Chlorophyta Division
9.4.11 Spirogyra, Zygnema, Chlorophyta Division
9.4.12 Vaucheria disperma, yellow-green algae, Xanthophyceae, Phylum: Gyrista
9.4.13 Volvox, Chlorophyta Division
Green algae genera: Chlamydomonas, Chlorella, Cladophora, Closterium, Oedogonium, Spirogyra, Volvox
Experiments
18.1.1 Algaecides, control of algae in swimming pools
6.5.7 Microalgae
12.7.11.3 Prepare copper (II) sulfate algicide
9.2.7 Use of freshwater algae for hydroponics
6.5.7 Microalgae
Microalgae, (microphytes), occur in freshwater and marine environments, and are unicellular, but may exist individually or in chains or groups.
Experiments may include the effect of the following on the growth of microalgae:
1. Light intensity, 2. Different coloured light, 3. Carbon dioxide, 4. Nutrients (change nitrate, phosphate), 5. Micro-nutrients, e.g. vitamins.
Culture the microalgae in test tubes and record the daily growth.
Use a haemocytometer for counting the microalgae.
Culture under ideal conditions for 10 days to get a graph similar to bacterial growth (exponential graph).
CSIRO supplies microalgae "starter" cultures and technical advice to industry, research and educational institutions in more than 65 countries since 1986.
In the aquaculture industry, microalgae are the essential first foods for larval and juvenile animals.
Cultures are grown under controlled-environment conditions in a purpose-built, Australian Quarantine Inspection Service AQIS) accredited algal culture facility.
CSIRO supplies cultures in 20 millilitre and 250 millilitre quantities, algal plate cultures for selected aquaculture strains, and strains for educational purposes.
Available microalgae strains include those from marine, estuarine and freshwater species.
Also available are aquaculture strains and toxin-producing species.
Selected strains are axenic (bacteria-free).
These algae can be maintained for a long time in the laboratory by sub culturing in agar plates.
Some micro-algae can be used in aquaculture as food for penaeid shrimp larvae, bivalve mollusc larvae, freshwater prawn larvae, postlarvae,
abalone larvae, marine rotifers (Brachionus), brine shrimp (Artemia salina), saltwater copepods, freshwater zooplankton.
9.4.1 Chlamydomonas, Chlorophyta Division
See diagram 9.39: Chlamydomonas, Sphaerella, (Haematococcus).
1. Chlamydomonas, (Chlamydomonas reinhardtii)
Look for Chlamydomonas as a bright green "water bloom" in freshwater pools, tanks and stagnant water.
It is unicellular, grows quickly, is about 10 microns in diameter, and has motile gametes.
Look for the cilium, contractile vacuole, cytoplasm, eye spot, cup-shaped chloroplast, nucleus, and cell wall.
2. Put cheese and the white of a hard-boiled egg in a glass container.
Add garden soil and washed sand.
Fill the container with rainwater and stand it in diffuse sunlight.
After a week, the water in the glass container may turn green with Chlamydomonas.
3. Put a drop of the culture water on a microscope slide, apply a coverslip, and examine the culture under low power.
Observe the rapid rhythmic rolling movements of Chlamydomonas.
Irrigate with iodine solution and observe the cell wall, basin-shaped chloroplast, eye spot and storage granules.
9.4.2 (Closterium lunula), desmid, Chlorophyta Division
See diagram 9.43: Closterium.
The desmids, (Greek desmos chain), family Desmidiaceae, are microscopic, unicellular green algae, usually found united in chains or masses.
Experiment
Closterium and other desmids occur in acidic clean water, e.g. ponds and drainage ditches.
Culture them in the water in which they were living.
Examine the crescent-shaped cells.
Desmids contain barium sulfate crystals and they indicate clean, unpolluted water with acid pH.
Look for the nucleus, pyrenoids, and chloroplasts in two "semi-cells".
9.4.3 (Codium tomentosum), Chlorophyta Division
Velvet horn, spongeweed, widespread in deep rock pools, north east Atlantic Ocean, Family Codiaceae
See diagram 9.39.1 Filamentous algae, Cladophora, Nostoc, Oedogonium, Oscillatoria, Spirogyra, Ulothrix, Zygnema
See diagram 9.41.1: Chloroplasts of Spirogyra and Ulothrix
9.4.4 (Chlorella vulgaris), Chlorophyta Division
Single-celled algae, 2-10 mu m diameter, no flagellum, chlorophyll a and b in chloroplast, high concentration of cheap protein and nutrients,
many alleged health benefits, including gums, teeth oral hygiene, digestion, thinner cell wall than C. pyrenoidosa, so easier to digest, Family Chlorellaceae
Chlorella dried herb powder, broken cell wall, sold as extremely high in chlorophyll and magnesium, detoxifier, complete protein source.
9.4.5 (Chondrus crispus), Rhodophyta Division
Sea moss, herbal medicine, "Irish moss", red algae, carrageenan, kelp, used in cough mixtures.
It is a popular tufted, immune-oosting seaweed, rich in vtamin C, B12, sulphur, potassium, calcium, magnesium, protein, pectin, beta-carotene, antioxidants, antivirals, and high in iodine.
It contains 92 of the approximate 102 essential minerals and can be used to treat anaemia, soothes mucous membranes to prevent congestion, expectorant qualities dissolving phlegm and clearing the lungs.
It is used to treat respiratory illnesses, e.g. bronchitis or irritating coughs, common colds and is in a commercial cough medicine, e.g. "Bonnington's Irish Moss".
It is a high fibre with a gentle laxative effect and can be used to thicken any dish, added to smoothies, desserts or creamy mash potato.
It is believed to possess an aphrodisiac property, so it is boiled with milk and cinnamon and sipped in Jamaica, Trinidad and Toba.
Dulse, dillisk, red dulse, creathnach, is a popular fibre food and snack food (Palmeria palmata), Ireland, Iceland, Canada, Palmariaceae
Highly nutritious and beautiful seaweed, and rich in B6, B12, Iron, Calcium, fibre and protein.
It rebuilds and maintains glands with its high iodine content, aiding healthy thyroid function, cleanses the body of heavy metals
It increases metabolism and assists weight loss, heals and enhances liver health along with the digestive system.
It is low in sodium and high in manganese, giving it at 'salty' flavour.
It can be eaten "straight", or used to replace salt in cooking, sprinkled over salads and soups, added to broth recipe, or cooked with fish and butter.
9.4.6 (Ecklonia buccinalis), (Sargassum lendigerum), Phaeophyta Division
Division Phaeophyta, Class Phaeophyceae, brown algae, brown seaweed, kelps
The seaweed solutions sold to gardeners are usually made from cold water bull kelp (Durvillea potatorum), and knotweed kelp (Ascophyllum nodosum).
Kelps washed up on the sea shore may be gathered then washed to remove the sea salts and composted before adding to the garden soil.
7.0 Class Phaeophyceae, brown algae
See diagram 9.44: Ecklonia.
(Ecklonia maxima), kelp, sea bamboo, brown algae, Phaeophyceae, Phylum Phaeophyta.
The Sargasso Sea in the Atlantic Ocean is famous for huge areas of the floating brown algae, (Sargassum acinarium).
(Fucus vesiculosus), kelp, bladderwrack, herbal medicine, Fucaceae
Experiments
1. Examine a brown seaweed found between low and high tide marks.
Observe the holdfast for anchorage, the stem and the expanded frond containing chlorophyll for photosynthesis and the yellow pigment fucoxanthin, C42H58O6.
Examine a plant of Fucus as an example of a brown seaweed.
Observe the disc shaped or branched holdfast, the stalk or stipe, and the expanded lamina showing thick midrib and wings.
Note also the indentations at the tips of the thallus where the growing points are situated.
2. Observe the holdfast, stipe and fronds.
If the specimen is (Fucus vesiculosus), note also the bladders that give buoyancy.
Cut a transverse section across a vegetative branch and mount and examine under low power.
Note the differentiation into limiting layer, cortex and medulla.
Examine prepared slides of transverse sections cut through male and female conceptacles.
Observe the antheridia, oogonia and paraphyses.
9.4.7 (Hormosira banksii), Phaeophyceae
(Hormosira banksii), Neptune's necklace, sea grapes, bubble weed, intertidal one, kelp, brown algae, Australia, New Zealand
See diagram 9.45: Hormosira.
Repeated forking occurs at the receptacles, and inflated internodes form hollow bladders.
Flask-shaped conceptacles are sunken into the bladder wall that produce sperm and ova.
Observe the holdfast and body like a string of hollow beads or grapes, receptacles.
The bumps on the receptacles are the conceptacles, round little holes containing the sexual organs.
At high tides, gas in the receptacles keeps the plant erect.
At low tides, the exposed plant collapses, but the tough leathery body protects it.
9.4.8 (Pleodorina californica), Chlorophyta Division
Pleodorina is a colonial green algae, which produces aquatic algal blooms, Family Volvocaceae.
9.4.9 (Pleurococcus vulgaris), (Protococcus), Chlorophyta Division
See diagram. Pleurococcus
Pleurococcus (Protococcus), causes red snow.
Scrape a green encrustation from a piece of damp wood or bark of a tree.
Mount in water and examine under low power.
The spherical green structures are single cells of the alga Pleurococcus.
Look for colonies of cells.
Stain with iodine solution.
Observe the cell surrounded by the cell wall.
Note the cytoplasm, the nucleus, and the large irregular-shaped chloroplast.
Look for division into two daughter cells that will become round and separate from each other.
9.4.10 (Sphaerella platanifolia), (Haematococcus), Chlorophyta Division
Sphaerella (Haematococcus) is another unicellular alga that occurs in stagnant pools.
It has a brick-red pigment in the vacuoles and so may form brown masses on trees and even brown rain and snow.
If cultured in a jar of water, it is attracted by low intensity light.
9.4.11 (Spirogyra porticalis), Zygnema, Chlorophyta Division
Spirogyra ,filamentous green algae, occur in freshwater habitats, forms dense mats or floating colonies, spiral-shaped chloroplasts, string or hair-like.
It is slimy to touch, emit bubbles just under the water’s surface, large blooms can deplete oxygen levels in the water, controlled with algaecides,
Class Zygnematophyceae.
See diagram 9.41.0: Cell of Spirogyra
See diagram 1.1: Filamentous algae, Spirogyra
See diagram 9.41.1: Chloroplasts of Spirogyra and Ulothrix.
9.3.7 Plasmolysis in Spirogyra
6.6.7 Chloroplasts, Spirogyra, Zygnema, Closterium
Experiments
1. Observe the nucleus, cytoplasm, cell wall, and spiral chloroplast.
Spirogyra and Zygnema are unbranched filaments with cylindrical cells arranged end to end.
Find these bright green, freely floating algae as clumps on the surface of ponds as "pond scum".
2, Keep them in water from the original site.
Spirogyra chloroplasts are in spiral bands.
Zygnema , a conjugate algae, form green or yellow-brown mats of macroscopic filaments, two stellate chloroplasts per cell.
They can reproduce asexually, sexually, or vegetatively, Zygnemataceae.
These filamentous algae live as blue-green patches in rain puddles, on the moist walls of greenhouses and at the water's edge in dirty ponds and pools.
Observe their threadlike growth.
3. Lift out a piece of green scum with attached mud and transfer it to a glass container with some water in which it was growing.
Keep it in a room in diffuse sunlight.
Examine the algae in a drop of the original water to see the blue-green filaments with cross walls.
9.4.12 (Vaucheria disperma), Xanthophyceae, yellow-green algae
Experiment
Mount some fresh filaments.
Observe the method of branching.
Examine part of a filament under high power.
Examine a prepared slide showing antheridia and oogonia.
9.4.13 (Volvox globator), Chlorophyta Division
See diagram 9.42: Colonial (coenobial) algae, Eudorina, Gonium, Pandorina, Volvox.
Volvox, (Latin volvere to roam), is a coenobium of ciliated cells forming minute, hollow spheres with a rolling motion, spinning around in the water.
Volvox looks like a hollow sphere colony of Sphaerella.
Each Volvox is composed of many flagellate cells similar to a Chlamydomonas, interconnected by plasmodesmata and arranged in a hollow sphere (coenobium).
Each cell has beating cilia that cause the Volvox to roll along through the water.
Inside a Volvox colony may be daughter colonies.
It reproduces asexually from large gonidia cells and sexually from male antheridia and female oogonia cells.
Experiment
Culture Volvox in the water in which they were living and observe their spinning or rolling motion.
9.5.0 (Cycas circinalis), Cycads, Cycadophyta Division
The Cycad Pages, Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney
Cycads are tropical or subtropical plants, similar to palm trees, dioecious with large, coloured, female or male cones.
Cycads have a multciliate sperm (microspore, pollen grain) released in the liquid in the pollen tube to swim to the archegonium (female sex organ),
within the female prothallus (gametophyte), formed by the megasporangium (ovule).
The living Cycad families are: Cycadaceae, e.g. Cycas, Stangeriaceae, amiaceae, and are native to Asia, Pacific Islands, Australia and Africa.
Byfield fern, (Bowenia serrulata), (looks like a fern because of its bipinnate fronds from an underground stem-root, Australia, Stangeriaceae
Zamia fern, (Bowenia spectabilis), yam-like edible rhizome, Australian native food, Stangeriaceae
'Mount Surprise Blue', (Cycas cairnsiana), glaucous blue, keeled leaves, emerge with a fuy coating, and develop a waxy texture with age,
becoming recurved, popular collection from wild, northern Queensland, Australia, Cycadaceae.
Sago palm, (Cycas pectinata), stout trunk, crown of large glossy leaves, .slow-growing, erect main stem, up to 12 m, crown of large leaves
It is used as a food and folk medicine, ornamental, Australia, Cycadaceae
Cycads, Gymnosperms, Division: Cycadophyta, Family: Cycadaceae (Cycas pectinata), Sago palm
Palms, palm trees, Angiosperms, Monocotyledons, Family: Arecaceae: (Metroxylon sagu), True sago palm
See: Metroxylon sagu, True sago palm, Arecaceae
King sago palm, (Cycas revoluta), Sotetsu, Japanese sago palm, Japanese fern palm, slow growing, up to 7 m, thick coat of fibers on its trunk,
contains many chemical compounds, herbal medicine, young leaves to cover wounds | Cycasin, C8H16N2O7, toxic to cats | Macroamin, C13H24N2O11 |.
The poisonous seeds used for for tonic to expel phlegm, increase menstrual flow, used to treat rheumatism, most cultivated ornamental palm.
It is used for the production of sago, Japan, China, Cycadaceae
Queen sago palm, (Cycas rumphii), upright fronds, orange male cone, Indonesia, PNG, Cycadaceae
Bread tree, (Encephalartos altensteini), prickly cycad, white-haired cycad, South Africa, slow growing, long palm-like fronds,
female cone like a pineapple, Cycadaceae
Hope's cycad, (Lepidoamia hopei), up to 4 m, single stemmed, possibly the tallest cycad in the world, grows in in moist and shady positions
along creek beds, cular leaves up to 2 m in length with glossy green leaflets, Australia, cycad, Phylum Cycadophyta.
Lepidoamia hopei, Daleys Fruit Trees
Scaly amia, (Lepidoamia peroffskyana), pineapple cycad, prickly cycad, scaly amia, large palm-like with trunk covered with leaf bases,
dark green and glossy leaves, leaflets are attached to the upper side of the stalk or rachis, near the midline, cones on separate male and female plants,
red seeds, Phylum Cycadophyta.
Burrawang palm, (Macroamia communis), cardboard palm, sago palm, (not a true palm), fern cycad, prickly cycad, large palm-like
with trunk covered with leaf bases, fronds to 24 m long, is pineapple-shaped male and female on separate plants, large red seeds, amiaceae, Phylum Cycadophyta.
Macroamia communis, Burrawang palm, Daleys Fruit Trees
Johnson's cycad, (Macroamia johnsonii), Australia, amiaceae
Macroamia johnsonii, Daleys Fruit Trees
Moore's cycad, (Macroamia moorei), Australia, amiaceae
Macroamia moorei, Daleys Fruit Trees
Zamia palm, (Macroamia riedlei), poisonous if eaten raw, edible if preparer properly, ornamental, Western Australia, amiaceae
Cardboard palm, (Zamia furfuracea), coontie, container plant, male and female cones on different plants, amiaceae, Phylum Cycadophyta.
Florida arrowroot, (Zamia integrifolia), coontie, seminole bread, shrubby cycad forming dense clump with many heads,
It is used to make arrowroot, native Americans food plant, all parts poisonous if not properly prepared, Southern US, Caribbean Islands, amiaceae,
Phylum Cycadophyta.
Coontie palm, (amia pumila), sago coontie, small tough woody cycad, red seed cones, West Indies and Florida (USA, amiaceae, Phylum Cycadophyta.
9.6.0 (Ginkgo biloba), Ginkgophyta
Ginkgo tree, (Ginkgo biloba), maidenhair tree, perennial, dicotyledon, deciduous, frost tolerant, attractive foliage, leaves used for herbal medicine,
antioxidant anti-inflammatory expectorant, antibacterial, food for brain, benefits to circulation, culinary uses,
valued in folklore as an "adaptogen" immune support tonic.
Ginkgo is deciduous, dioecious, (male and female trees), reaches 24 m in height, produces a multiciliate sperm.
Ginkgo biloba, ginkgo, maidenhair tree, is only survivor of the order Ginkgoales in Permian period, herbal medicine, edible fruit.
It may be sold commercially as "Ginkgo biloba extract dry concentrate from dry leaf".
Ginkgo are all extinct except for Ginkgo biloba.
See diagram: Ginkgo tree.
Ginkgo, Daleys Fruit Trees
Dried herb sold as leaves, Mudbrick Cottage
Ginkgo biloba extract ECb 761, "Tebonin" is sold as a standardied extract of Ginkgo biloba leaves, which has antioxidant properties as a free radical
scavenger ECb 761 has been available in Europe as a herbal extract since the early 1990s, however, products containing ECb 761 are not approved
for use by the US FDA, (2016).
The psychological and physiological effects of ginkgo are said to be based on its primary action of regulating neurotransmitters and exerting
neuroprotective effects in the brain, protecting against or retarding nerve cell degeneration, and improving blood flow in small blood vessels.
There is no clear research evidence that Ginkgo retards memory loss in adults over 60, or treats sudden deafness, tinnitus, or diabetes, but research is continuing.
9.7.0 Gnetophyta, Gnetophytes
Gnetophytes = Gnetum + Ephedra + Welwitschia.
Gnemon tree, (Gnetum gnemon), paddy oats, meninjau, needs irrigation during dry weather, fruit contains Resveratrol C14H10O3,
fruit and flower buds are deep fried in hot oil and eaten as a snack, growing tips very soft and juicy, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Gnetaceae.
Gnetum, Gnetophyta Division
Gnetaceae, Class Gnetopsida, (Gnetum is the only genus in Gnetaceae)
Gnetum cleistostachyum, a liana, contains Coumaric acid C9H8O3, Resveratrol C14H10O3, and many other stilbene derivatives, Gnetaceae
9.8.1 (Ephedra distachya), Ephedra, Gnetophyta Division
Chinese ephedra, (Ephedra sinica), ma huang, joint fir, almost no leaves, male and female cones, dangerous dietary supplement,
used for illegal manufacture of methamphetamine, herbal medicine, Mongolia, Russia, northeastern China, Ephedraceae
(Ephedra sinica), (E. equisentina) and (E. intermedia) contain the alkaloids ephedrine, pseudoephidrine, phenylpropanolamine, (norephidrine),
cathine, (norpseudoephidrine).
(Ephedra aspera), rough joint fir, branched shrub, yellow twigs, tiny leaves, male and female plants, Ephedraceae
(Ephedra bronchodilator), ephedra, Pseudoephedrine, (isomer of ephedrine).
(Ephedra distachya), joint fir, central Europe, ephedrine from dried branches, herbal medicine, treat rheumatism, asthma, Ephedraceae
(Ephedra foeminea), synchronizes its activity to the lunar cycle, by nocturnal dipterans and lepidopterans, pollination coincides with July full moon, Ephedraceae
(Ephedra funerea), Death valley joint fir, desert areas, Southwest USA, Ephedraceae
(Ephedra nevadensis), nevada ephedra, perennial shrub, wind-pollinated, astringent taste, use dried stems for Mormon tea, native American tea,
herbal medicine, broncho-dilator, sexually-transmitted diseases, contains little or no ephedrine or any other alkaloids | tannins | Southwest USA, Ephedraceae
(Ephedra viridis), green Mormon tea, green erect twigs, red-black vestigial leaves, western USA, Ephedraceae
9.9.0 Lycophyta, Lycophytes, clubmosses, spikemosses
Lycopodiophyta, lycopsids, lycopods, lycophytes, clubmosses
Class: Lycopodiopsida
Order Lycopodiales, (Subclass Lycopodiopsida)
Lycopodiaceae, clubmoss, ground pine, with spores are on a club-like structure, chromosome count n=34
Huperiaceae, firmosses, with spore-bearing structures in the axils of leaves, chromosome count n=67
Phylum Lycopodiophyta
Isoetes Isoetaceae
Hupereia, Lycopodiaceae
Lycopodium, Lycopodiaceae
Selaginella
Water tassel-fern, (Hupereia serrata), toothed clubmoss, huperia, Chinese medicine | Huperine , Lycopodiaceae
Plain quillwort, (Isoetes drummondii sub drummondii), live crowded together in dry places, Australia, Isoetaceae
Isoetes species are usually submerged plants in freshwater lakes
Common Clubmoss, (Lycopodium clavatum), stag's-horn clubmoss, stag horn moss, ground pine, Lycopodiaceae
Lycopodium, ground pines, creeping cedars, ("lycopodium" means "wolf's foot")
Lycopods: Clubmoss
Interrupted Clubmoss, (Lycopodium annotinum), Icelandic Clubmoss | Annotine , Lycopodiaceae
A Lycopodium plant is not a "fern" or a "moss"
Maidenhair creeper, (Lycopodium flexuosum), rhiomatous perennial climbing fern. thin wiry dense vines, climbing from the horiontal rhizomes,
herbal medicine, noxious weed in Asian rice fields, Australia, Asia, Lycopodiaceae
Old world climbing fern, (Lycopodium microphyllum), ribu-ribu, selada, invasive weed, Africa, Southeast Asia, Australia, Lycopodiaceae
Rock tassel fern, (Lycopodium squarrosum), droops from rain forest tree limbs, Africa, Polynesia, Australia and Asia Lycopodiaceae
Clubmoss experiments:
Lycopodium, Spores called "lycopodium powder", or "flash powder" may explode in the air if ignited, fine yellow
powder, highly flammable, called "Dragon's Breath" at magic shops, dangerous game to throw at people's legs then ignite.
Lycopodium powder, made from the dried spores of Clubmosses, contain a lot of fat, which is hydrophobic.
Sprinkle lycopodium powder on the surface of water, then stick your finger through the powder into the water.
The lycopodium powder coats your finger and prevents the water from touching your skin, so when you pull out your finger, it feels dry.
Dried herb sold as Clubmoss spores powder.
Tallebudgera spikemoss, (Selaginella andrewsii), terrestrial plant, with a creeping habit, scrubby branches up to 20 cm,
slender wiry stems, rooting along their length, broadly ovate leaves with finely toothed margins and and narrowing to a point bear spores,
cone-like structures (strobili) are at the ends of branches.
Selaginella andrewsii, DASF
Selaginella, Selaginellaceae, spikemoss, Class Lycopodiopsida
African Clubmoss, (Selaginella kraussiana), spreading clubmoss, creeping stems, green foliage, prostrate plant with rhiophore shoots root-like organs
ormed at forks in axis, roots readily, houseplant, Selaginellaceae
Resurrection plant, (Selaginella lepidophylla), desert plant, survives desiccation, when dry like ball of dead foliage, with water forms rosette shape,
houseplant, Selaginellaceae
Variegated spikemoss, (Selaginella martensii), upright stems to 30 cm, later decumbent, aerial roots, houseplant, Mexico, Central America, Selaginellaceae
9.10.0 Marchantiophyta, Liverworts
See diagram 9.46.2: Marchantia.
Common liverwort, (Marchantia polymorpha), umbrella liverwort, Marchantiaceae
Common pellia, (Pellia epiphylla), overleaf pellia, Pelliaceae
Floating crystalwort, (Riccia fluitans), aquarium plant, liverwort, forms dense floating mats Ricciaceae, Phylum Hepatophyta.
Liverworts are the most lowly land plants with single-celled rhioids and no clearly-differentiated stem and leaves.
They grow in moist shady habitats on wet rocks or near shallow streams, usually clumped together to save moisture.
The plant is the gametophyte generation, a broad branching thallus.
Together the plants look like little leaves clumped together and attached to the damp soil by hair-like rhioids.
The antheridia produce swimming sperm that fertilie an ovum in the archegonium to form the ygote that grows into the sporophyte.
The sporophyte has no chlorophyll and remains a sort of parasite with no connection to the soil, but attached to the archegonium.
It releases spores that develop into the next gametophyte generation.
Marchantia reproduces rapidly by vegetative buds produced in gemma cups.
The sexual organs, the antheridia and archegonia are formed on different plants.
Liverworts have alternation of generations, because they have a flat leafy (n, haploid) gametophyte and have a delicate stalk (seta) (2n, diploid),
sporophyte that dies after spore dispersal.
Experiments
1. Collect plants from moist sheltered places, e.g. behind waterfalls, in cooler periods of the year.
2. Collect plants of Pellia in the early spring.
Observe the leafy gametophyte with rhizoids at its base and the capsule or sporogonium.
Note the presence of dark green globular capsules just behind the growing points of some thallus branches.
Also, note small warty prominences further back from the tip and either side of the midrib.
These prominences are old antheridia cavities, now empty.
Dissect out a sporogonium, noting the short seta.
Crush the capsule into a drop of water.
Observe the wall with its characteristic thickenings, the spores and the elaters.
Cut a transverse section of the thallus, mount in water and note the structure, similar to the lamina of Fucus, but attached to the soil, with hair-like rhizoids.
3. Collect Pellia plants in the early summer.
Observe the presence of antheridia and cut sections through the thallus where they occur.
Note also involucres just behind the tips of some branches and cut longitudinal sections through these to see the archegonia.
Look for the thallus, gemma cups, rhizoids, sperm with two flagella, male thallus, antheridium, female thallus, and archegonium.
Liverworts are the most lowly land plants with single-celled rhizoids and no clearly-differentiated stem and leaves.
They grow in moist shady habitats on wet rocks or near shallow streams, usually clumped together to save moisture.
The plant is the gametophyte generation, a broad branching thallus.
Together the plants look like little leaves clumped together and attached to the damp soil by hair-like rhizoids.
The antheridia produce swimming sperm that fertilize an ovum in the archegonium to form the zygote that grows into the sporophyte.
The sporophyte has no chlorophyll and remains a sort of parasite with no connection to the soil, but attached to the archegonium.
It releases spores that develop into the next gametophyte generation.
Marchantia reproduces rapidly by vegetative buds produced in gemma cups.
The sexual organs, the antheridia and archegonia are formed on different plants.
Collect plants from moist sheltered places, e.g. behind waterfalls, in cooler periods of the year.
9.12.0 Conifers
Abies, conifer, Pinaceae
Agathis, conifer, Araucariaceae
Araucaria, conifer, Araucariaceae
Athrotaxis, conifer, Cupressaceae
Cedrus, conifer, Pinaceae
Chamaecyparis, conifer, Cupressaceae
Cupressus, conifer, Cupressaceae
Juniperus
Larix
Pseudotsuga conifers, Douglas firs, Pinaceae
Picea
Pinus
Podocarpus, conifers, plum pines, Podocarpaceae
Sequoia, redwood conifers, Cupressaceae
Thuja, conifer arborvitae, Cupressaceae
Tsuga, conifer, hemlock, Pinaceae
Taxus, conifer, yew, Taxaceae
Wollemia nobilis, conifer, Wollemi "pine", Araucariaceae
The Coniferophyta, or Pinophyta, or Coniferae, commonly known as conifers, are vascular land plants containing a single class, Pinopsida.
Conifers are cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms, perennial woody plants with secondary growth.
Conifers include the pine, fir, spruce, other cone-bearing trees and shrubs, and yews
Coniferophyta, Pinophyta, conifers are seed-bearing plants with ovules on the edge of an open sporophyll.
The sporophylls are arranged in cone-like structures.
Conifers are pyramidal or conical trees with long straight stems that taper to an apical growing point, the leader.
The almost horizontal branches bear narrow needle-shaped leaves.
The original tap root dies leaving shallow roots that let the tree be blown over by storms.
Smaller roots have no root hairs, but have a sheath of fungus that penetrates into the root epidermis.
Small microspore cones at the ends of branches produce microspores, pollen grains.
Large megaspore cones are made up of leaf-like sporophylls that contain the ova.
The fertilized ova develop to form seeds released when the woody cone opens.
Most conifers produce woody cones by lignification of the seed-bearing sporophylls, but Juniperus, Podocarpus and Taxus have soft fruit.
See diagram 9.50: Pine tree cone.
See diagram 9.50.1: Swelling movements.
Experiments
1. Look for a microspore cone, pollen grain, pollen tube, microsporophyll, microspores (pollen) megasporophyll, micropyle, ovule, megaspore, and bract.
2. Examine twigs of Pinus in summer.
The twigs should show evidence of at least three years' growth.
Observe the structure of purely vegetative twigs, the position and structure of seed cones of varying age, the position and structure of staminate cones.
3. Examine the male and female cones of Pinus.
Dig up some shallow roots and examine the mycorrhiza under the microscope.
Dissect first year, second year and third year seed cones and note their general structure.
Note the seeds lying naked on the cone scales.
4. Remove a megasporophyll from a first year cone and look for the two megasporangia (ovules) on the upper surface.
The bract scale is on the lower surface.
5. Examine the structure in longitudinal section under high power.
6. Examine a sporophyll from a second year cone in the same way.
7. Examine a third year cone.
Remove a megasporophyll and note the seeds with their wings attached.
Cut a longitudinal section through a seed and examine under low power.
8. Dissect a staminate cone and note the form of the microsporophylls (stamens).
Crush one of them into a drop of glycerine and examine the pollen grains under high power.
Examine transverse and longitudinal sections of staminate cones.
9. Examine the structure of the current year stem and the older stems by means of transverse and longitudinal sections.
Examine the tracheids, the sieve tubes, the medullary rays and the resin canals.
10. Cut a transverse section of a leaf.
European silver fir, (Abies alba), silver fir, white fir, silver spruce, white spruce, slender tree,
sparse foliage up to 50 m. needle-like leaves about 3 cm long with notched tips, large cones, dark glossy appearance. popular Christmas tree,
because fresh mild aroma, and long-lasting needles, Europe, Pinaceae.
Only genus "Abies" plants may be called "fir trees", so Abies are the "true firs".
Gymnosperm, Division Pinophyta, Family Pinaceae, Genus: Abies, Abies albabrus
Balsam fir, (Abies balsamea), Canaan fir, balsam tree, American silver fir, balm of gilead fir, evergreen conifer, up to 20 m, dense flat dark green needles,
thick sticky aromatic resin, popular Christmas tree, because of pyramid spherical shape and fragrant aroma and needles stay on tree after being cut,
dark purple to brown long cones grow erect on the stems, grey bark, used for mounting medium Canada Balsam, native North American folk medicine,
vitamin C content said to prevent scurvy, North America, Pinaceae.
Prepare Canada balsam mounting medium: 6.1
Kauri tree,(Agathis australis), is over 45 m third-largest conifer, New Zealand.
Gymnosperm, Division Pinophyta, Family Araucariaceae, Genus Agathis, Agathis australis
Borneo kauri, (Agathis borneensis), Malayan kauri, damar minyak, Araucariaceae
Amboyna pine, (Agathis dammara), damar pine, black kauri, evergreen, up to 28 m, ornamental and lumber, Australia, Java, Araucariaceae
Queensland kauri pine, (Agathis robusta), smooth-barked kauri, in Brisbane City Botanic Gardens, Queensland, Araucariaceae
Agathis robusta, Queensland kauri pine Daleys Fruit Trees
Brazilian pine,(Araucaria angustifolia), candelabra tree, evergreen, to 40 m, thick scale-like leaves, endangered species, Brazil,
Araucariaceae
Araucaria is from the province of Arauco, Chile.
Araucaria may be called "pine", but they are not genus Pinus.
Monkey puzzle tree, (Araucaria araucana), Chilean pine, prickly leaf, up to 24 m, 1.2 m trunk diameter, tangle of branches "would pule a monkey",
longevity up to 100 years, national tree of Chile, endangered species, garden favourite in 19th century, Chile, Araucariaceae
Bunya pine, (Araucaria bidwillii), bunya nut, Araucariaceae
Piggyback araucaria, (Araucaria biramulata), biramule araucaria, (because develop second growth tip halfway up the trunk), in Blue Mountains Botanic Garden,
vulnerable species, New Caledonia, Araucariaceae
Cook pine, (Araucaria columnaris), New Caledonia pine, in Brisbane City Botanic Gardens, New Caledonia, Araucariaceae
Cook pine, Daleys Fruit Trees
Hoop pine, (Araucaria cunninghamii), Queensland pine, Moreton Bay pine, colonial pine, parana pine, up to 50 m, up to 2 m diameter, softwood,
transversely cracked coarse bark, hoops apparent when bark stripped from trunk, dimorphous leaves, preservative-treated poles for pole-frame construction,
power poles, impregnated with preservatives for fencing, particle board, plywood, native Australian species, in Brisbane City Botanic Gardens,
plantations, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Araucariaceae
Hoop pine, Daleys Fruit Trees.
Norfolk Island pine, (Araucaria heterophylla), (not a pine, Pinus), symmetrical pyramidal shape, in native habitat up to 65 m, slow growing,
straight vertical trunk up to 3 m diameter, regular tiers of short, horiontal, spreading branches, male cones oblong to 5 cm, female cones
erect to 12 cm long, seeds winged up to 3 cm long, if grown indoors rarely exceeds 2 m, dimorphous leaves, grown in attractive groves or
in containers, the only plant of this genus grown as houseplant, used as ecological Christmas trees as they are not dumped after holidays,
used for public beachside plantings, popular house plant, Araucariaceae
Norfolk Island pine, Daleys Fruit Trees.
Klinki pine, (Araucaria hunsteinii), Papua New Guinea mountains, to 80 m, habitat loss threat, Araucariaceae
Pencil pine, (Athrotaxis cupressoides), slow growing, (but not a pine, Pinus), Tasmania, Cupressaceae
Atlantic cedar, (Cedrus atlantica), Atlas cedar, African cedar, Moroccan cedar wood oil, libanol oil, conifer, Pinaceae
Himalayan cedar, (Cedrus deodara), deodar cedar tree, conifer, Pinaceae
Cedrus deodara, Himalayan cedar tree, Daleys Fruit Trees
Cedar of Lebanon, (Cedrus libani), majestic tree, conifer, mountains of Lebanon, in Bible 1 Kings 5:6-10, Pinaceae
Mourning cypress, (Chamaecyparis funebris), Chinese weeping cypress, Chinese cedar wood oil, Cupressaceae
Taiwan cypress, (Chamaecyparis formosensis), Cupressaceae, conifer.
Lawson cypress, (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana), Port Orford cedar, Oregon cedar, lawson false cypress, up to 6 m tall, 2 m wide, garden plant, Cupressaceae
Alaska cedar, (Chamaecyparis nootkatensis), Alaska yellow cedar, yellow cedar, Cupressaceae
Formosan hinoki, (Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana, C. taiwanensis), Cupressaceae
Hinoki cypress, (Chamaecyparis obtusa var. obtusa), false cypress, Taiwan cypress, Cupressaceae
Sawara cypress, (Chamaecyparis pisifera), Cupressaceae, conifer.
White cypress, (Chamaecyparis thyroides), Atlantic white cedar, narrow conical tree, North America, Cupressaceae
Italian cypress, (Cupressus sempervirens), Mediterranean cypress, true cypress, cemetery tree, Ariona cypress, funeral tree, because once cut it never grows again, wood formerly used to make coffins, funereal cypress, long-living, garden plant, height to 12 m, used for hedges, popular landscaping plant | Camphene, C10H16 | Cymene,
C10H14, CH3C6H4CH(CH3)2 | Pinene, C10H16 | Sabinol, C10H16O | Sylvestrene, C10H16 | Cupressaceae
Leyland cypress, (Cupressocyparis leylandii), Alaskan cedar example of inter-generic crossbreeding sterile hybrids propagated by rooted cuttings many cultivars e.g. Leighton Green, the "spite tree or hate tree" used to block neighbour's views, also used as Christmas trees, Cupressaceae
Patagonian cypress, (Fitroya cupressoides), named after Captain Robert Fitroy, captain of HMS Beagle, with passenger Charles Darwin, strong reddish timber, Tasmania, Cupressaceae
Mountain cedar, (Juniperus asbei), rock cedar, Mexican cedar, Mexican juniper, Cupressaceae
Chinese juniper tree, (Juniperus chinensis), (a cypress with berries), up to 25 m, dimorphous needle-like leaves, and scale-like leaves, herbal medicine, China,
east Asia, Cupressaceae
Juniperus chinensis, Chinese Juniper Tree, Daleys Fruit Trees
Juniper, female plant, (Juniperus communis), common juniper, more than 4 metres, plant male and female trees if berries are required, scales of reproductive
cone coalesce to form a fleshy "berry" around the seeds, immature berries have pinene smell and are used to used to flavour meat and cabbage,
(Dutch genever, juniper), gives name to a gin for its flavour, berries contain | myrcene | sabinene | herbal medicine, stimulates elimination of
uric acid and other toxins, relief from pain and stiffness, Cupressaceae
Common juniper, (Juniperus communis, var. communis, var. erecta), up to 5 m, religious purification, urinary antiseptic herbal medicine, shrub or small tree,
widespread in North America, popular garden plant. Cupressaceae
Juniper - Self Pollinating, Mudbrick Herb Cottage.
Juniper-female, Mudbrick Herb Cottage.
Juniper-male, Mudbrick Herb Cottage.
Dried herb sold as berries.
Plant sold as: Juniper - (bi-sexual plant), Juniper - (sexed male plant), Juniper - (sexed female plant)
Prickly juniper (Juniperus oxycedrus), cade juniper, juniper tar, cade oil, prickly cedar, medlar tree, Cupressaceae
Savin juniper, (Juniperus sabina), coffin juniper, Hollywood juniper, slow growing, long-lived, crushed needle-like leaves, emit strong smell, savin oil,
used to flavour gin, Cupressaceae
Flaky juniper, (Juniperus squamata), Himalayan juniper, Nepal juniper, single seed juniper, scaly-leaved, India, Nepal, Cupressaceae
Eastern red cedar, (Juniperus virginiana), red cedar, southern red cedar, Bedford cedar wood, Virginian cedar wood, cedar wood oil, it is a juniper
and not true cedar, very popular tree, dense cone-shaped tree for landscapes, blue berries on female trees, slightly toxic, North America, Cupressaceae
Juniperus virginiana 'Grey Owl', Daleys Fruit Trees
European larch, (Larix decidua) , Chinese larch, strong timber, bark used for tanning and dyes, Pinaceae
Gmelin larch, (Larix gmelinii) widespread in Eurasia and North America, tall trees, straight columnar trunks, the only deciduous Pinaceae,
wood rich in resins | E636 Maltol | Pinaceae
Western larch tree, (Larix occidentalis), Venice turpentine, native American herbal medicine, Pinaceae
Olga Bay larch, (Larix olgensis), Olgan larch, deciduous mountain forest tree, vulnerable species, Japan, conifer, Pinaceae
New Zealand incense tree, (Libocedrus plumosa), kawaka, evergreen conifer, up to 35 m, planted in large parks and gardens. New Zealand, Cupressaceae
Pancher neocallitropsis, (Neocallitropsis pancheri), evergreen coniferous tree, up to 10 m, plant is harvested from the wild for its essential Araucaria oil,
New Zealand
Norway spruce,(Picea abies), spruce, common spruce, spruce pine, useful wood, most common Christmas tree in Europe,
pine scent, spruce fir, herbal medicine, (not a "true fir", genus Abies), trees knocked over by strong winds, Pinaceae
A spruce tree is genus Picea.
Brewer spruce, (Picea breweriana), weeping spruce, conifer, evergreen conifer, up to 40 m, buttressed trunk, drooping branches, grey-brown bark,
flattened leaves (needles), red-purple seed cones, (Alkaloids: Hygrine, Hygroline, N-methylsedridine and N-methylpelletierine), popular ornamental
with soft weeping habit, North America, Pinaceae
Anac pine,(Pinus brutia), grown in Brisbane City Botanic Gardens from seed collected at Lone Pine region, Gallipolli, Turkey, Pinaceae
Pines include conifers: cedars, spruces, firs and pines.
Caribbean pine, (Pinus caribaea), yellow pine, caribaea pine, to 30 m, softwood, timber tree, extensively planted in Australia, Central America, Cuba, Bahamas, Pinaceae
Slash pine, (Pinus elliotti vars), Florida pine, yellow pine, Cuban pine, up to 35 m, 0.7 m diameter stem, large spreading branches, bark sheds in small scales,
general purpose softwood, decorative, particle board, plantations in Australia, United States, Pinaceae
White spruce, (Picea glauca), Canadian spruce, slow-growing conifer, dense compact shape and cone, short grey-green needles, used as pot plant, cold climate plant, Pinaceae
Aleppo pine, (Pinus halepensis), Jerusalem pine, turpentine oil, Pinaceae
Bristle cone pine, (Pinus longaeva), Pinaceae, (said to live for up to 5000 years), turpentine oil, Pinaceae
Black spruce, (Picea mariana), Canadian black pine, slow-growing conifer, blue-silver foliage, dense pyramid shape, short prickly needles, Pinaceae
Merkus pine, (Pinus merkusii), Tenasserim pine, turpentine oil, Pinaceae
Longleaf pine, (Pinus palustris), longleaf yellow pine, southern yellow pine, pitch pine, terebrinthina, long flexible needles, syrup of tar, pine tar oleoresin
| turpentine oil | North America, Pinaceae
Maritime pine, (Pinus pinaster), sea pine, turpentine oil, Pinaceae
Pine nut tree, (Pinus pinea), stone pine, Italian stone pine, parasol nuts, pignolias, Roman pine, umbrella pine, Southern Europe, flattened crown straight
reddish trunk, seeds eaten called "pine nuts", truffle host, Pinaceae
Pine nut tree, Daleys Fruit Trees
About 20 species of Pinus spp. produce relatively large, edible "pine nuts".
Monterey pine, (Pinus radiata), radiata pine, up to 50 m, stem to 1 m diameter, large spreading branches, visible pine cones, thick rough bark, pungent pine scent, New Zealand turpentine oil, major plantation species throughout the world, Christmas tree farms, general purpose softwood, North America, Pinaceae
Scots pine, (Pinus sylvestris), thick blue-green pine needles, turpentine oil, main source of essential oil called pine oil, lubricant, alternative medicine,
mainly | alpha-Terpineol | Scotland, Pinaceae
Plum pine, (Podocarpus elatus), Illawarra plum, mahogany pine, she pine, "brown pine" (Qld, NSW).
It is a common rainforest pine, but lacking an obvious cone, up 36 m, leaves up to 25 cm long, dark blue-purple berry-like seed cones with edible fleshy base.
The round, greenish seed is seated at the apex of a larger fleshy stalk that resembles a purple-black grape with a waxy bloom.
This stalk is edible, but is rather mucilaginous and resinous in flavour, which is used to make jam or jelly more acceptable than the raw stalks.
It is used in condiments, timber used in furniture, ornamental tree, street lining, east coast of Australia, Australian native food, Podocarpaceae
Podocarpus elatus, Tucker Bush
Dwarf plum pine, (Podocarpus spinulosus), shrubby plum pine, spiny-leaf podocarp, understory shrub, up to 2 m, needle-like leaves, berry-like cones,
edible purple-black arils, coastal eastern Australia, Podocarpaceae
Nagi, (Nageia nagi), evergreen, up to 20 m, smooth peeling bark, leathery leaves, straight, cylindrical bole, valuable timber tree, amenity tree in China and Japan,
is planted in gardens, parks, sanctuaries, street trees, bonsai cultivation, Asia, Podocarpaceae.
Douglas fir, (Pseudotsuga meniesii), Oregon balsam, Oregon pine, North America, Mexico, China, largest conifer, timber tree, up to 60 m, up to 2 m diameter, clear of branches for about two-thirds of its height, and therefore produces a high percentage of clear wood, very fibrous bark, lives for 400 years valuable timber, Pinaceae
California redwood, (Sequoia sempervirens), coast redwood, sequoia, giant sequoia, redwood pine, giant redwood, world's
tallest tree, 110 m, may live for thousands of years, California, Cupressaceae
Sequoia sempervirens, California redwood, Daleys Fruit Trees
Giant redwood, (Sequoia gigantea), only species, giant sequoia, big tree, sierra redwood, wellingtonia, reaches 90 m height, 12 m trunk diameter,
long-lived, large timber volume, Cupressaceae
Dawn redwood, (Metasequoia glyptostroboides), large deciduous conifer, conical shape, spongy red bark turns grey with age, light green then rose brown
then gold foliage in autumn, strong timber, China, Cupressaceae
A redwood is a very large tree with spongy red bark.
Arborvitae,(Thuja occidentalis), eastern arborvitae, American arborvitae, emerald cedar, northern white cedar, tall cone shape,
bright bright green foliage soft to touch, used for hedge in small gardens, herbal medicine, essential oil, cedar leaf oil for hands and arms, North America,
Romania, Cupressaceae
Thuja occindentalis, White cedar, Mudbrick Herb Cottage.
Dried herb sold as aerials.
Western red cedar, (Thuja plicata), British Columbia cedar, western cedar, red cedar, giant cedar, giant arborvitae, western arborvitae, Washington cedar,
shinglewood, up to 55 m, stem up tp 5 m diameter, thin fibrous fissured bark, used for sawn timber and decorative objects, Canada, USA, Cupressaceae
Chinese thuja, (Thuja orientalis, now Platycladus orientalis), Chinese arborvitae, oriental thuja, biota, small slow-growing tree 8-20 m, scale-like toxic leaves,
allergenic, herbal medicine, ornamental, East Asia, Cupressaceae
Hiba, (Thujopsis dolobrata), dense, slow-growing, pyramidal, evergreen conifer, up to 50 m, Japan, Cupressaceae
Eastern hemlock, (Tsuga canadensis), Canadian hemlock, garden tree, dwarf to 21 m, not poisonous, tannins, spruce oil, Pinaceae
It occurs in the US and Canada.
Tsuga are called "hemlocks", but no connection withHemlock, (Conium maculatum), Apiaceae,
four species in North America and four species in eastern Asia.
Yew tree, (Taxus baccata), common yew, English yew, churchyard tree, Japanese yew, slow growing, evergreen and long-lived,
so grown in English churchyards to symbolize immortality, needle-like leaves, used for hedges, long-bows, poisonous leaves, | Paclitaxel chemotherapy
medication used to treat cancers (PTX) |
(Experiment: cut stem and use ink to show transpiration stream). England, Taxaceae
Pacific yew, (Taxus brevifolia), western yew, American yew, evergreen timber tree, Paclitaxel, (PTX). anticancer drug, North America, Taxaceae
Himalayan yew, (Taxus wallichiana), Paclitaxel, (PTX), endangered species, Himalayas, Western China, Taxaceae
Whiteberry yew, (Pseudotaxus chienni), carving wood, ornamental, China, Taxaceae
Wollemi "pine", (Wollemia nobilis), discovered 1994, formerly known only as a fossil, height to 36 m, now being extensively
propagated, (not a true pine, genus Pinus, and not in the pine family, Pinaceae), Araucariaceae
Wollemi pine, Daleys Fruit Trees
9.11.0 Pteridophyta
9.11.1 Ferns
9.11.2 Horsetails, Equisetaceae, Polypodiophyta Division
9.11.3 Whisk-fern, Psilotum , Psilotopsida Division
9.8.0 Gymnosperms
* Gymnosperms, vascular seed plants, no fruit or flowers, produce pollen, “naked seeds”, i.e. seeds not protected by a fruit but are in unisexual cones
A conifer cone is called a strobulus.
Gymnosperms, Gymnospermae, Conifers, Cycads, (Ginkgo biloba), and Gnetophytes
* Angiosperms, flowering plants, seeds developed in the ovaries of flowers and surrounded by a protective fruit.
Angiosperms, flowering plants, Magnoliophyta Division
Spermatophytes, the plants that produce seeds, Conifers, Cycads, (Ginkgo biloba), and Gnetophytes, + Angiosperms
9.11.1 Ferns
Mangrove fern, (Acrostichum speciosum), clumping, compact, dark green foliage, widespread, occurs in tropical swamps, used as tropical groundcover, Australia,
Pteridaceae
Southern maidenhair fern, (Adiantum capillus-veneris), Venus's hair fern, American maidenhair, feathery fronds, dark stems, herbal medicine, popular garden
fern in American tropic region has siphonostele, tubular stele with xylem and phloem as a hollow tube around the pith frond repels water, (tannin, traditional
medicine), houseplant garden fern, Pteridaceae
Rough maidenhair fern, (Adiantum hispidulum), new fronds pink-brone, houseplant, Australia, Pacific islands, Africa, Pteridaceae
Rough maidenhair fern, (Adiantum hispidulum), Daleys Fruit Trees
Bird's nest fern, (Aspenium australasicum), houseplant, ornamental, Taiwan vegetable, Australia, Aspleniaceae
Birds nest fern, (Aspenium australasicum), Daleys Fruit Trees
Mother spleenwort, (Asplenium bulbiferum), hen & chicken fern, fronds up to 60 cm, small plantlets on upper leaf surfaces can be repotted, houseplant, Aspleniaceae
Necklace fern, (Asplenium flabellifolium), "walking fern", buds develop at ends of pinnate fronds, fern, Aspleniaceae
Crow's nest fern, (Asplenium nidus), common on wayside trees, glossy, thick, leathery fronds form vase-like rosette rotating from a short, central stem,
forming a "nest", which collects fallen leaves from surrounding trees, brown spore cases on undersides, narrow sori form lateral veins of sporophyll,
houseplant, folk medicine, Chinese vegetable, folk medicine, ease labour pains, to treat fever, Aspleniaceae
Hart's-tongue fern, (Asplenium scolopendrium), common ornamental, folk medicine, Europe, Aspleniaceae
Maidenhair spleenwort, (Asplenium trichomanes), Australia, Aspleniaceae
Common lady-fern, (Athyrium filix-femina), lady fern, Northern Hemisphere, Athyriaceae
Japanese painted fern, (Athyrium nipponicum), pictum, ornamental, Japan, Athyriaceae
Large mosquito fern, (Azolla filiculoides), duckweed fern, fairy moss, water fern, up to 7 cm, bright green then red-purple upper leaves stay afloat,
submercged lower leaves on short stem have feathery roots, widely introduced to decorate ornamental ponds.
It grows in waterways in dense patches, which can make it look like a green or red carpet.
In the shade, it is a bright green colour but it changes to deep red when exposed to the sun.
It is beneficial to the aquatic environment as a food source and it provides habitat for many small organisms.
It can discourage blue-green algal blooms as its 'mats' restrict the penetration of sunlight into the water and takes up nutrients from the water column.
So removal of azolla from waterways can cause bloom of toxic blue-green algae.
It can be a form of biological mosquito control, because the mats prevent mosquito larvae surfacing for air.
It can can restrict the growth of exotic aquatic plants, including salvinia and water hyacinth, and become a significant weed competing against indigenous
waterway vegetation and causing pollution of drinking water.
However, where waterways are extremely rich in nutrients, extensive growth of Azolla can cause de-oxygenation of the water, leading to decay of aquatic
animals and plants that can cause a strong odour.
Phototrophic cyanobacterium, (Anabaena azollae), can fix atmospheric nitrogen, lives symbiotically in leaf cavities of Azolla .
Azolla is cultivated then rots as nitrogen fertilier as it decomposes for the rice industry in Vietnam, China and the Philippines.
See photo Anabaena azollae.
See photo Azolla pinnata.
Phycobiliproteins nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria, Anabaena azollae
Feathered mosquito fern, (Azolla pinnata), velvet fern, ferny azolla, feathereymosquitofern, up to 2.5 cm, triangular in outline, use to clean up pollutants.
Azolla , an aquatic, free-floating Australian native fern
Azolla, Aquatic Technologiea
Brail tree fern, (Blechnum brasiliense), Brailian dwarf tree fern, rib fern, crown fern, rosette of red-brown fronds, Blechnaceae
Gristle fern, (Blechnum cartilagineum), soft water, distinct vegetative sporophylls and spore-bearing sporophylls, Australia, Blechnaceae
Silver lady fern, (Blechnum gibbum), dwarf tree fern, houseplant, a "hard fern", rosette of large fronds, to 1 m, older plants with distinct trunk,
Pacific Islands, Blechnaceae
Hammock fern, (Blechnum occidentale), used to treat medicinal disorders, a food. Mexico, Central America, Caribbean, Blechnaceae
Water fern, (Ceratopteris thalictroides), Indian fern, water sprite, water hornfern, roots in mud, spongy air-filled fronds, salad vegetable, herbal medicine,
aquarium plant floating and rooted, Pteridaceae
"C-Fern", (Ceratopteris richardii), (small patented "C-fern"), aquarium plant, used for scientific experiments and teaching biology. Pteridaceae
Christella, (Christella subpubescens), terrestrial fern, grows in tufts with fronds up to 80 cm long, creeping rhizome has dark brown scales and hairs,
frond stalk has small hairs, terminal leaflet can be up to 18 cm long, grown in a container or in a tropical garden, can be invasive, Australia, Thelypteridaceae.
Parasitic maiden fern, (Christella parasitica), Australia, Thelypteridaceae
Golden chicken fern, (Cibotium baromet), manfern woolly fern, "vegetable lamb of Tartary, Tartarian lamb, Scythium lamb", (woolly rootstock like an animal),
up to 1 m, folk medicine, rhizome used to treat liver and kidney ailments, Asia, Cibotiaceae
Lacy tree fern, (Cyathea cooperi), Australian tree fern, ornamental, invasive in Hawaii, Australia, Cyathaceae
Tree fern, (Cyathea cooperi), Daleys Fruit Trees
Common tree fern, (Cyathea latebrosa), thick erect stem, up to 4 m needs frost-free cultivation, Southeast Asia, Cyatheaceae
Japanese holly fern, (Cyrtomium falcatum, Aspidium falcatum), holly fern, rocky cliffs, houseplant, garden ornamental, widespread, Dryopteridaceae
Mountain bladderfern, (Cystopteris montana) arctic bladder fern, creeping cordlike, scaly stem, leaves up to 45 cm long. North America, Dryopteridaceae
Deer’s foot fern, (Davallia bullata), squirrel's foot fern, houseplant, attractive dark green leaves, hairy dark brown rhizomes like the hooves of a deer, Davalliaceae
Hare's foot fern, (Davallia denticulata), houseplant, thick rhizome, densely covered with red-brown scales with many small marginal teeth, Australia, Davalliaceae
Rabbit's foot fern, (Davallia fejeensis fern), houseplant, brown hairy rhizome, Fiji, Davalliaceae
Hare's foot fern, (Davallia sollida var. pyxidata), hare's foot, because furry exposed rhizomes, grows in rock cracks, Australia, Davalliaceae
Lacy Ground Fern, (Dennstaedita davallioides), long creeping rhizomes, dense groundcover, Australia, Dennstaedtiaceae
Japanese lady fern, (Deparia petersenii), creeping growth, long rhizomes, thick groundcover, invasive, Australia, East Asia, Athyriaceae
Australian tree-fern, (Dicksonia antarctica), erect rhizome forming a trunk, large spreading fronds, hairy at the base, in wet sclerophyll forests and in cloud forests,
up to 15m, large dark green fronds spreading canopy, used as a garden host for epiphyte ferns, orchids and bryophytes, the pith of the plant my be eaten either
cooked or raw, Australia, Dicksoniaceae
Golden tree fern, Dicksonia fibrosa fern, soft tree ferns, wheki, (woolly tree fern), thick erect stems, dictyostele, siphonostele as network, Dicksoniaceae
Lady fern, (Diplaium dilatatum), up to 60 cm, erect rhizome, forming a short trunk covered with elongated dark brown scales, many spore-forming receptacles
under the fronds, Asia, Australia, Athyriaceae
Prickly rasp fern, (Doodia aspera ), rough ruby, groundcover, tender, clump-forming, evergreen, pinnate, erect to arching, dark green fronds, reddish-pink to
maroon when young, fronds are divided into broadly linear, toothed, rough segments, pink-red fronds have toothed margins, ornamental, Australia, New Zealand,
Pacific Islands Blechnaceae.
Doodia aspera, Prickly rasp fern, Daleys Fruit Trees
Male fern, (Dryopteris filix-mas fern), basket fern, shield fern, large deciduous fern, stout rhizomes, popular garden ornamental, Europe, North America,
Dryopteridaceae
Umbrella fern, (Gleichenia flabellata), fan fern has mesarch protostele where some metaxylem forms centrifugally adjacent to the phloem, but most forms
centripetally towards the centre of the stem, large Australasian fern with fanlike repeatedly forked fronds, Gleicheniaceae
Gleichenia, coral fern, parasol fern, Gleicheniaceae
Harsh ground fern, (Hypolepis muelleri), stiff upright fronds, large colonies, Australia, Dennstaedtiaceae
Shiny shield fern, (Lastreopsis acuminata), short rhizome with clustered fronds up to 45 cm long, pale-brown stipe, widespread in rainforests, Australia
Pale wood fern, (Macrothelypteris torresiana), Australia
Nardoo, (Marsilea drummondii), nardoo lemna, water clover fern, perennial aquatic fern, roots in mud substrate, floats on the surface, native Australian
food, "seed" collected and processed into flour, Marsileaceae
Kangaroo paw fern, (Microsorum diversifolium), kangaroo fern, up to 30 cm, low-growing spreading hairy rhizomes, odd-shaped leathery green fronds,
used as groundcover or in hanging pots, Australia, Polypodiaceae
Fishtail fern, (Microsorum punctatum), climbing bird's nest fern, terrestrial elkhorn fern, crested fern, epiphytic or rock growing, upright flat strap-like fronds,
creeping rhizome has dense hairs scales, fronds up to 150 cm long, shiny surface, circular superficial sori, Australia, Polypodiaceae
Sword fern, (Nephrolepis exaltata), Boston fern, lace fern, dense clump of leaves, lush green terrestrial or epiphytic fern, commonly grown, houseplant,
Polypodiaceae
Giant sword fern, (Nephrolepis biserrata), arching fronds up to 240 cm, Florida, Polypodiaceae
Royal fern, (Osmunda regalis), cinnamon fern, herbal medicine, interrupted fern
Adder's tongue fern, (Ophioglossum vulgatum), up to 20 cm, very high chromosome count, folk medicine, wound poultice, "green oil of charity", tea for internal
bleeding, widespread, Ophioglossaceae
Ophioglossum , adder's tongue ferns very high chromosome count, herbal medicine, Ophioglossaceae
Sickle fern, (Pellaea falcata), dwarf sickle fern, rigid clumping perennial herb spreading from short, branched underground stems, Australia, Pteridaceae
New Zealand button fern, (Pellaea rotundifolia), button fern, New Zealand cliffbrake, sickle fern, leathery leaflets, dry conditions, has siphonostele, tubular stele
with xylem and phloem as a hollow tube around the pith, distinctive button-like foliage houseplant, Pteridaceae
Green cliff brake, (Pellaea viridis), sickle fern, green brake fern, houseplant, invasive, Australia, Pteridaceae
Christmas fern, (Polystichum acrostichoides), sword fern, American sword fern, has many rows of sori on pinnules of fern, North America, Dryopteridaceae
Hard shield-fern, (Polystichum aculeatum), buds formed near end of frond may root when touching the soil, the true indusium is stalked structure lower epidermis,
common ornamental, Europe, Dryopteridaceae
Tsus-simense holly fern, (Polystichum tsus-simense), Korean rock fern, houseplant, Dryopteridaceae
Elk horn fern, (Platycerium bifurcatum), common staghorn fern, elk's horn, broad fertile fronds like stag's horns, sterile fronds cover roots, ornamental fern,
Polypodiaceae
Giant staghorn fern, (Platycerium grande), epiphyte, fertile fronds like a stag's antlers, overcollection so critically endangered species, Philippines, Polypodiaceae
Staghorn fern, (Platycerium superbum), ornamental, Australia, Polypodiaceae
Staghorn fern, (Platycerium superbum), Daleys Fruit Trees
Queen staghorn, (Platycerium wandae), the largest staghorn, Papua New Guinea, Polypodiaceae
Bear's paw fern (Polypodium aureum), blue-green arching deeply-cut leaves with wavy edges, fur-like rhizomes at the base of the fronds, native to tropical regions,
houseplant to drape over a hanging basket, indirect sunlight, Polypodiaceae.
Common polypody, (Polypodium vulgare), fern, rockcap fern, climbing fern, angle vein fern, leather leaf fern, American rock fern, herbal medicine slime on tree
trunks by using adherent scales, branched rhizome, fern, Polypodiaceae
Western bracken fern, (Pteridium aquilinum), " bracken", induces abortion croier-like coiling of young leaves, the false indusium is the leaf margin curved towards
the lower surface of the sporophyll, creeping branching rhizome, starchy rhizomes are edible, herbal medicine, Pteridaceae
Cretan brake fern, (Pteris cretica), stove fern, deeply divided green fronds with slender serrated leaflets, houseplant, Pteridaceae
Slender brake fern, (Pteris ensiformis), silver lace fern, paku padang, houseplant, herbal medicine, Pteridaceae
Leather fern, (Rumohra adiantiformis), leatherleaf fern, tropical Southern Hemisphere, Dryopteridaceae
Common salvinia, (Salvinia minima), water spangles, aquatic, floating fern, invasive, South America, Salviniaceae
Giant salvinia, (Salvinia molesta), floating fern, no true roots, serious water weed, forms thick mats that can quickly cover water bodies, infestations reduce
water flow, degrade water quality, and affect native animals, stock, and recreational users, Brail, Salviniaceae
Lacy tree fern, (Sphaeropteris cooperi, Cyathia cooperi), scaly tree fern, commonly cultivated ornamental, Australia, Cyatheaceae
Norfolk tree fern, (Sphaeropteris excelsa), ornamental, largest fern in the world, Norfolk Island, Cyatheaceae
Hanging fork fern, (Tmesipteris elongata), rhizome dichotomously branched, up to 3.5 mm diameter, densely clad in dark brown rhioids, aerial shoot developing
over one or many years, "living fossil", has several hundred chromosomes, Psilotaceae
9.11.2 Horsetails, Equisetaceae, Polypodiophyta Division
Horsetails, (Equisetum arvense), common horsetail, giant horsetail, field horsetail, innkraut, pewter plant, scouring rush, candock, snake grass, pulegrass,
herbaceous perennial, looks like a Christmas tree, up to 60 cm, strange tasting tea, Kaempferol,
herbal medicine, wound-healing poultice, fern, invasive and almost ineradicable weed, garden herb, (fossil: Calamites), primitive, non-woody, herbaceous,
appearance of miniature bamboo, leaves are greatly reduced, non-photosynthetic, grow in whorls of 6–18 on the main shoots, are fused part of length into
nodal sheaths, plant does not flower, stems are green and photosynthetic, fruiting cones at ends of stems, produce pale-green spores, China, Equisitaceae
Dried herb sold as aerials, see text below diagram.
(Equisetum is the only genus in Equisetaceae, Division Polypodiophyta.)
9.11.3 Whisk-ferns, Psilotum , Psilotopsida Division
Whisk fern, (Psilotum nudum), fork fern, two species, tropics and subtropics, "living fossil", no roots, epiphytic and terrestrial, leaves greatly reduced,
but green wiry stems, lives in rock crevices, Psilotaceae
Whisk-ferns, Psilotum , Division Psilotopsida
(Araucaria bidwillii) Bunya pine, bunya nut, up to 45 m, straight rough-barked trunk,symmetrical
dome-shaped crown, lance-shaped sharply pointe and glossy green leaves narrow male cones on the ends of short branchlets, large, female fruiting cones
form once every three years, danger from both cones falling from the tree, female cone contains up to 100 large “Bunya nuts”, Australian native food,
widely planted, valuable as an ornamental and a timber tree, large pineapple-shaped cones "bunya nuts", every 3 years, in Brisbane City Botanic Gardens,
Australian native food, Araucariaceae
Araucaria bidwillii, Daleys Fruit Trees
The Bunya nut is extracted from large pine cones contain between 50 to 100 nuts and weigh as much as 10 kg.
The cones are covered in spikes and fall from towering heights of 30-45 metres.
Nuts are produced each year, but a bumper crop is produced every three years, near Brisbane.
The flavour is described similar to a starchy potato or chestnut or a blend of chestnuts and pine nuts.
Either way the kernel must be removed from the shell before being boiled in salty water or placed in the fire for cooking.
For nuts-shelling, place the nuts in a jug or bowl and cover with boiling water for 2-3 minutes.
This softens the shells making it easier to cut and makes the brown skin surrounding the nut, stick to the inside of the shell allowing the nut to be removed cleanly.
Use a strong short blade knife or Stanley knife and slice down the length of the nut.
This method has been described as 'dangerous', so some people use a pair of secateurs or a ratchet poly pipe cutter.
The softened shell will peel away from the nut.
Slice the nut in half and discard the centre pith which can have a bitter after taste.
Place the nuts in boiling water and simmer for 10 minutes.
Cool slightly before shelling to extract the edible nut.
To make a nut meal, place in blender when cold and process to bread crumb consistency.
Use shelled nuts (raw or boiled) and toss lightly in a hot pan with melted butter or your favourite oil.
Be careful not to overcook as the nut flesh will become hard and leathery.
Turn the nuts frequently for even cooking.
The nuts are pierced and then roasted.
When cooking directly on the fire, the use of hot ashes gives better results as the shells can ignite on hot coals of flames.
Bunya kernels (If bunya has cooled, reheat in steamer as temperature is important).
Briefly blend hot kernels then add 175ml boiling water, add 1 tsp salt and 100ml Macadamia oil, blend on high speed 5 minutes, stop and scrape.
Dissolve 1½ tsp honey in 175ml hot water, add to mix and blend on high speed for 15 minutes.
Scrape, mix, remove and chill, may be froen for storage, must be labelled with date and batch.
Bunya pine, Daleys Fruit Trees
9.2.5 Moss experiments
1. Examine capsules of Funaria or other mosses at different stages of maturity and note the peristome and the method of liberation of spores.
If you fix a cut off capsule in wax, you can examine the peristome under low power.
Breath on the capsule to show the hygroscopic movements of the peristome teeth.
2. Collect protonema of Polytrichum from hedgerows or on the soil in flower pots.
Polytrichum spores germinate to form a filamentous stage called a protonema.
Later, buds form on the protonema to grow into the moss plant.
Polytrichum often mingles with Vaucheria, but Polytrichum is septate.
Observe the green filaments with transverse septa and the brownish rhizoids with oblique septa.
Observe buds on the green filaments and young plants in various stages of development.
3. Look for the male and female plant, female plant with attached sporogonium, leaves, stem, rhizoids, sporogonium capsule, sporogonium seta.
4. Collect common woodland mosses usually found in compact colonies or cushions in damp shady places.
Some grow on the damper side or south side of tree trunks and fence posts.
Observe the erect stems, small leaves, and the rhizoids that attach the plant to the soil.
Look for terminal cups, sexual organs, and tubular capsules that contain asexual spores.
Some tufts of plants bear rosette-like antheridia cups containing spores.
Note the structure of the antheridia and paraphyses, sterile hairs or filaments that bear the spore-making structures, the sporangia.
The archegonia cups that house the ovum are less conspicuous, so you may have to dissect more than one apex to find an archegonium.
5. Use four areas of activity: 1. field observations, 2. spore culture, 3. cultivation of gametophytes, 4. investigation of spore and leafy gametophyte growth to
study the times of spore discharge, growth of the protonema, leafy gametophyte production, sex organ production (archegonia and
antheridia),
fertilization, growth of sporophyte, relative importance of reproduction by spores or gemmae and tubers.
Use information on local temperatures, day length, rainfall, to relate to observations of life cycles.
6. The upper part of the moss capsule (sporangium) may be specialized for gradual spore discharge.
The life cycle of moss begins with asexual reproduction.
Leaf-like moss grow thin, brown stalk with capsules at the top.
The capsules contain tiny spores instead of sex cells.
Spores are the cells that can develop into a new individual without fertilization.
Mosses reproduce by means of spores which are dispersed from the mouth of the capsule by the numerous rays (orange and brown), that snap open.
Grow moss spores and study which factors of the environment controls germination, growth, differentiation of leafy gametophytes.
Mature spore filled capsules are mostly available in the latter half of the year in the Southern Hemisphere.
A problem is how to count the numbers of spores per capsule, per culture, or the number of leafy gametophytes that form.
Leafy gametophytes grow from the protonema.
Clubmoss, Lycopodiophyta Division
Kingdom: Plantae
Marchantiophyta (liverworts)
Bryophyta (mosses)
Anthocerotophyta (hornworts)
Tracheophyta (vascular plants)
Selaginella experiments
See diagram 9.49: Selaginella.
1. Look for the Selaginella plant, cone, scale leaves, lateral leaves, rhizophores.
Observe the microsporangia containing many microspores, and megasporangium containing four megaspores.
The Clubmoss have club-shaped cones that bear spores and are known as "fern allies".
Plants of the Selaginella genus, spikemoss, are small prostrate plants with four rows of small leaves on the axis.
They live in damp places.
(Selaginella kraussiana) and (Selaginella martensii) are grown in greenhouses.
The Selaginella plant is a sporophyte bearing microsporangia and megasporangia in the same cone.
A microsporangium produces microspores to be dropped onto damp soil and later eject a swimming sperm.
The larger megasporangium produces megaspores to be dropped onto the soil, germinate in rainy weather,
and produce a female prothallus with an ovum inside.
The ovum is fertilized by the sperm to form a zygote that grows into the next sporophyte generation.
Both types of spores have a tri-radiate ridge from origin in the tetrads following meiosis.
Experiments
1. Collect the microspores and megaspores from a ripe cone and scatter the spores on moist absorbent paper.
Observe the development of young sporophytes.
2. In Lycopodium note the presence of definite cones.
Examine the sporangia, both externally and by cutting sections of the cones.
Ferns experiments
See diagram 9.48.0: Dryopteris.
See diagram 9.48.2: Pteridium, bracken fern.
See diagram 9.48.3: Pteridium prothallus, sporophyte.
See diagram 9.48.4: Fern life cycle.
Ferns are vascular plants with xylem and phloem, true leaves, but no seeds.
The stag's horn is a common epiphyte in rainforests.
The asexual phase, the sporophyte, is the large fern that develops spores in sporangia.
The sexual phase, the gametophyte, develops the sexual organs.
It is an insignificant little plant like a little flat leaf, the size of a fingernail.
Experiments
1. Examine Dryopteris, wood fern.
Note the rhizome and adventitious roots, stem and compound leaves, fronds.
Note the sori (singular: sorus) under the recurved fronds where spores are formed.
Dryopteris has rounded sori.
Pteridium has long sori along the margins of the pinnules.
Look for the sori under a leaf, compound leaf or frond, coiled young leaf, rhizome, and roots.
2. Cut a transverse section of a pinnule of Dryopteris to pass through a sorus.
Observe the tissues of the leaf, the placenta, sporangia in various stages of development in the indusium.
3. Dehiscence of fern sporangia Pteridium
Scrape some ripe sporangia into a drop of glycerine on a slide.
The glycerine withdraws water from the annulus cells and thus causes the opening of the sporangia.
You can slow the movements of the annulus with glycerine.
Scrape other sporangia on to a warm slide and observe the annulus movements under the microscope.
4. Fern prothallus Pteridium
To grow fern prothalli, place a soaked flower pot inside a larger one, packing the space between with wet sphagnum or peat.
Allow a mature frond bearing a sorus to dry on a piece of paper and then scatter the spores so obtained on the inner surface of the small flower pot.
Stand the pots in an inch or so of water and cover the top of the pots with a sheet of glass.
Green prothalli will soon appear, and you can observe successive stages in their development.
Observe the archegonia and the liberation of sperms from the antheridia.
Young sporophytes will develop if you water the prothalli after they show archegonia.
Ascophyllum, Family Fucaceae, Class Phaeophyceae
(Ascophyllum nodosum), only species in genus Ascophyllum, rockweed, knotted kelp, Norwegian kelp, knotted wrack, egg wrack, cold water
seaweed, (garden fertilizer), Fucaceae, North Atlantic Ocean.
Dried herb sold as "frond powder" and "flakes".
Cutleria, Family Cutleriaceae, Class Phaeophyceae, Cutleria multifida, has 48 chromosomes.
Desmarestia, Family Desmarestiaceae, Class Phaeophyceae, Desmarestia ligulata, colour changer, flattened weed, sea sorrel
Dictyota, Family Dictyotaceae, Class Phaeophyceae, doubling weed, in Florida rapid asexual reproduction from fragments
(Dictyota binghamiae), mermaid's glove, is up to 40 m length
Durvillaea, Family Durvillaeaceae, Class Phaeophyceae, southern bull kelp, prolific growth, used as garden fertilizer
Composting Liquid Seaweed, Tasmanian bull kelp
(Durvillaea antarctica) and (Durvillaea poha), have buoyant fronds which holds air so may drift long distances
Ecklonia, Family Lessoniaceae, Class Phaeophyceae
9.1.6 Ecklonia
Ectocarpus, Family Ectocarpaceae, Class Phaeophyceae
Leather kelp, (Ectocarpus silicosis), hair-like, found everywhere, Ectocarpaceae
Toothed wrack, (Fucus serratus), serrated wrack, olive-brown, dichotomous branching, discoid holdfast, north Atlantic Ocean, Fucaceae
Spiral wrack, (Fucus spiralis), intertidal brown seaweed, can tolerate desiccation on upper shore, Europe, Fucaceae
Bladder wrack, (Fucus vesiculosus), kelp, seaweed with buoyancy bladders, chlorophyll yellow fucoxanthin, herbal medicine, Algae, Fucaceae
Dried herb sold as seaweed frond pieces.
9.1.7 Neptune's necklace, (Hormosira banksii), Phaeophyceae
Oarweed, (Laminaria digitata), kombu, kelp horsetail, laminarin, laminaran, is harvested offshore for making alginic acid used in cosmetics, fertiliser.
It is used to extract potash and of iodine, traditional medicine abortifacient, inducing labour, Europe, Morocco, Family Laminariaceae, Class Phaeophyceae
Dried herb sold as frond powder.
Ma-konbu, (Laminaria japonica), widely harvested edible seaweed, the original source of MSG, monosodium glutamate, ajinomoto, C5H8NNaO4
Monosodium glutamate MSG
16.3.2.9 Phycocolloids, Polysaccharide gums. China, Japan, Korea, Laminariaceae
Giant kelp, (Macrocystis pyrifera), kelp forests alginates algin used to thicken ice cream, edible, North America, Laminariaceae
Bull kelp, (Nereocystis luetkeana), bladder wrack, up to 36 m, north-east coast of North America, Laminariaceae
Sargassum species occurs in the Sargasso Sea.
Brown forking weed, (Bifurcaria bifurcata), occurs in Atlantic coast rock pools, Sargassaceae.
Wakame, (Undaria pinnatifida), miyeok, Asian kelp, large brown edible seaweed, is used in miso soup, invasive, Alaeiaceae.