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What is moss?

Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants which belong to the an ancient group or plants called bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hornworts. The individual plants are usually composed of simple leaves that are generally only one cell thick, attached to a stem that may be branched or unbranched..
https://bryophyte.cnps.org/index.php/resources/beginner

Parts of Moss

The gametophyte is the leafy part of a moss that does most of the photosynthesizing. It makes eggs and/or sperm, called gametes. It has a stem or stems, and is anchored to the ground by rhizoids, which are not roots since they do not have vascular tissue. The calyptra is also gametophytic. Gametophytic tissue has one set of chromosomes (N). Sporophytic tissue has two sets of chromosomes (2N). In mosses, the sporophyte consists of a long sturdy seta with a capsule on top. The capsule opens by the shedding of its operculum, revealing a peristome that liberates the spores.

https://bryophyte.cnps.org/index.php/resources/beginner

Common mosses:

still updating this gallery

Liverwort: Metzgeria furcata (Forked Veilwort) or Frullania growing on a tree
Liverwort: Metzgeria furcata (Forked Veilwort) or Frullania growing on a tree
Calliergonella cuspidata (Pointed spear-moss) car parks / forest floor
Mnium hornum (‘Swan’s-neck or thyme-moss)
Posssibly Dicranium
Fissenden Pocket mosses – muddy banks under trees
Grimmia pulvinata (Grey-cushioned Grimmia) Walls/stones/
Apple Moss?
Homalothecium sericeum (Golden fleece / Silky Wall Feather-moss). Growing on walls and stones.
Unknown
Metzgeria furcata (Forked Veilwort) or Frullania growing on a trees
Maybe Cratoneuron filicinum
possibly Wall Screw-moss (Tortula muralis) Growing on brick mortar
Plagonium Undulatum – palm tree moss – under trees
Orthotrichum anomalum (Wood or Anomalous Bristle-moss) Pin Cushion Moss growing on tree bark or
Sphagnum – on peat bogs / not generally found in urban environs
Sphagnum – on peat bogs / not generally found in urban environs
Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus (Electrified Cat-tail moss, Springy Turf-moss) with grass
possibly Wall Screw-moss (Tortula muralis) Growing on brick mortar
Snake Skin and Great scented liverwort

Terrariums

Terrariums are self-contained ecosystems, which are powered by sunlight. The plants photosynthesise, releasing oxygen and water. The water is released into the air as gas which condenses on the sides of the tank. The water then trickles down into the soil. Bacteria in the soil break down the oxygen and creates carbon dioxide, which the plant can use. And so, the cycle continues.

The idea that plants could survive in sealed glass cases was discovered by accident in the 1800s. Before this discovery, plants were transported as dry specimens since live pants would often die during transportation, in the darkness of the cargo holds or through exposure to salty sea air. Dr Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward returned from an expedition. He noticed that a fern spore had germinated by chance inside a glass jar. He left the seal intact for about four years before eventually publishing a book on the subject in 1842. A few years later, the ‘Wardian Case’ became fashionable household objects and represented a massive leap of scientific understanding that enabled the transport plants worldwide.

See more about terrariums here…

NOTES:

The moss Anoectangium compactum can survive up to 19 years in a dehydrated state, The Bryologist Vol. 25, No. 2 (March, 1922) https://www.jstor.org/stable/3237570?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents

“Four-hundred-year-old moss frozen in Little Ice Age revived in a ground-breaking experiment. The plant’s resilience suggests such cells may be ideal as trial balloons for researchers exploring survival beyond earth and travel to Mars” https://nationalpost.com/news/four-hundred-year-old-frozen-moss-re-animated-in-study-that-shakes-up-plant-science

RESOURCES:

https://species.nbnatlas.org/species/NBNSYS0000147421#overview

https://www.britishbryologicalsociety.org.uk/learning/some-common-bryophytes/common-mosses-on-walls/

http://www.bildatlas-moose.de/index.htm

https://bryophyte.cnps.org/index.php/resources/collecting

https://www.facebook.com/britishmoss

https://www.britishbryologicalsociety.org.uk/resources/bryophyte-identification/