A Plant With Many Names

— Written By John Murphy and last updated by
en Español / em Português
Español

El inglés es el idioma de control de esta página. En la medida en que haya algún conflicto entre la traducción al inglés y la traducción, el inglés prevalece.

Al hacer clic en el enlace de traducción se activa un servicio de traducción gratuito para convertir la página al español. Al igual que con cualquier traducción por Internet, la conversión no es sensible al contexto y puede que no traduzca el texto en su significado original. NC State Extension no garantiza la exactitud del texto traducido. Por favor, tenga en cuenta que algunas aplicaciones y/o servicios pueden no funcionar como se espera cuando se traducen.


Português

Inglês é o idioma de controle desta página. Na medida que haja algum conflito entre o texto original em Inglês e a tradução, o Inglês prevalece.

Ao clicar no link de tradução, um serviço gratuito de tradução será ativado para converter a página para o Português. Como em qualquer tradução pela internet, a conversão não é sensivel ao contexto e pode não ocorrer a tradução para o significado orginal. O serviço de Extensão da Carolina do Norte (NC State Extension) não garante a exatidão do texto traduzido. Por favor, observe que algumas funções ou serviços podem não funcionar como esperado após a tradução.


English

English is the controlling language of this page. To the extent there is any conflict between the English text and the translation, English controls.

Clicking on the translation link activates a free translation service to convert the page to Spanish. As with any Internet translation, the conversion is not context-sensitive and may not translate the text to its original meaning. NC State Extension does not guarantee the accuracy of the translated text. Please note that some applications and/or services may not function as expected when translated.

Collapse ▲

I can’t think of another plant that has so many common names of Lycopodium digitatum. Clubmoss, running cedar, fan-ground pine, fan-clubmoss, crowsfoot, Southern ground cedar, and my personal favorite, turkey paw are just some. Many of these names obviously draw from its resemblance to a miniature conifer. And to make the name of this plant even more confusing, apparently Lycopodium is not the settled upon genus, being also called Diphasiastrum digatatum (which does not exactly roll off the tongue).

Whatever you would like to call this plant, this club moss is a wonderful native ground cover found in the woods. It only reaches about 6” tall and spreads by underground runners. At Bullington Gardens it lines the native woodland trail in thick evergreen carpets. It may be one of the most asked about plants here.

There are several other club moss cousins in the woods. They are all prehistoric plants that reproduce by spores rather than seeds. In the fall, the spikes of “strobili’ rising above the foliage start to turn yellow and release clouds of yellow spores. These spores are highly flammable and create a bright flash that was used in the early days of flash photography.

Unfortunately, as much as people would like to add this plant to their woodland gardens, it is very difficult to cultivate. So the best places to enjoy turkey paw or running cedar is by taking a walk in your local woods.

Lycopodium digitatum.

Lycopodium digitatum