January 30th will be a captivating journey into the lush, green world of mosses and liverworts. Discover the historical uses of these fascinating plants, from ancient remedies to environmental indicators. Learn about the diverse species that thrive in the cold, damp conditions of January, and uncover the hidden beauty of their intricate structures. This article will reveal the secrets of these often-overlooked plants and their remarkable adaptations. Don't miss out on this enchanting exploration of nature's miniature wonders!
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Mosses
King Solomon himself may have started an interest in mosses, referring to “hyssop that springeth out of a wall”. Hyssop is thought to be a moss which can still be found on the ancient walls of Jerusalem. In Roman Britain it seems baskets were woven from the stems of our largest and the world’s largest moss Polytrichum commune, which can still be found in Epping Forest. From time in memoriam dried sphagnum moss, with its natural antiseptic properties, was used to staunch the blood of wounds.
Its use reached its zenith as late as the Napoleonic wars with over a million of such dressings then being made each month. Elsewhere there are numerous instances of mosses being used in medicines. Liverworts got their name from their use in treating liver disorders. The shape of their leaves looking similar to the lobes of a liver was enough to persuade most people of their suitability. More recently mosses have been used as bio-indicators of the health of an environment as well as pollution indicators.
Mosses and liverworts are the amphibians of the plant world and do well in the cold damp of January. Their lush translucent green, often luxurious growth stands out with an added freshness this month especially the feather mosses. Water is needed for the sexual phase of their life-cycle, which involves a mobile “sperm” swimming through rainwater to reach an egg, possibly on another plant. On walls and in cracks in the pavement there are four or five more noticeable species which are particularly common now i.e. Wall Screw moss Tortula muralis, Hair Screw moss Tortula ruralis, Silver Thread moss Bryum argenteum, Greater matted thread moss Bryum capillare and the Grey Cushion moss Grimmia pulvinata. The latter two may well be found with fruiting bodies (capsules). A lens is usually needed for an accurate field identification, but the silvery sheen alone of the Silver thread moss can often give it away.
The long nerves protruding from the end of the leaves of the Hair screw moss give the tiny cushions a hoary look, which can also aid its identification. If there are perfect round tiny cushions of moss on walls could well be the Grey cushion moss. The lens, as in many other areas of natural history, instantly opens up another world of shapes and designs. In the case of the leaves and capsules of mosses, a lens can suddenly reveal a startling beauty. Many of their leaves are so thin and translucent that individual cells can be seen quite easily under the microscope.
Other commonly noticed mosses in woods at this time are the Rough-stalked feather moss Brachythecium rutabulum, Sharp Fern-like feather moss Plagiotheicum denticulatum, Cypress-leaved feather moss Hypnum cupressiforme and the closely related Mammilate plait moss Hypnum mammilatum which has a more hair-like appearance, often looking not unlike a green beard covering the base of a tree trunk. All of them could possibly be fruiting which would greatly help in their identification.
Liverworts, for most of the year are either forgotten, not seen or ignored but in the cold damp days of January they are resplendent. They often have a glossy, almost succulent look when seen on the woodland floor, especially after it has been raining. There are two main types that look quite different. Leafy liverworts which are made up of tiny wafer thin leaves often set in ranks and thallose liverworts that look for all the world like miniature seaweeds.
They are often a vivid, transluscent green with cells that can be seen with a handlens. Compared generally with mosses, they have no upright stems, rounded rather than pointed leaves, leaves with no veins and quite often bizarre-looking sexual organs.
With their dependence on almost permanent wet conditions they tend to be found at the edges of rivers, streams, marshy areas, on rotting stumps and banks in wet woods. However, they do also show a preference for more unusual habitats such as leaking gutters, springs, trunks of trees and even on the surface of pots in greenhouses. Generally in London you will only find one or two different liverworts in most habitats but Epping Forest and Bookham Common boast over twenty species apiece.
They are a difficult group to identify in the field but some of their English names can give a clue at least to their possible genus. For instance Snakewort Conacephalum conicum looks not unlike snakeskin. The Star-headed liverwort Marchantia polymorpha has fruiting bodies that look like star-shaped umbrellas. The Crescent-cup liverwort Lunularia cruciata, another common species, is often covered in tiny crescent-shaped cups. The Pincerwort liverworts (Cephalozia) often have leaves with pincer-like ends, the Fingerworts (Lepidozia) leaves like fingers and the Threadworts (Cephaloziella) leaves reminiscent of woven thread. Others such as the Pouchworts (Calypogeia) have leaves that are pouch-shaped and Notchworts (Lophozia) leaves with small notches. One of the most common notchworts Lophazia ventricosa has leaves which end in a distinct V-shaped notch. One last very common species is the Bifid Crestwort Lophocolea bidentata which is often found mixed with mosses on shady woodland banks.
Its leaves don’t have crests but all do end in two distinct prongs set quite widely apart. Its leaves also overlap each other rather like roof tiles allowing water by capillary action to make its way along the shoot to its growing point.
