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Article: What is moss?(Knight Ridder Newspapers)
- Article from:
- Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service
- Article date:
- October 10, 2002
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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There are literally thousands of mosses in the world, 1,200 species in North America alone, according to George Schenk, who wrote what many consider the leading book on moss: "Moss Gardening: Including Lichens, Liverworts, and Other Miniatures."
While mosses can have silver, rose or yellow hues, the vast majority are shades of green.
Known as cryptogams, mosses are tiny plants that have stems with leaves, needles, scales or fronds. Low in the plant hierarchy, they don't have flowers or roots. Rhizoids, rootlike filaments, hold the plant in place. Moss gets its nutrients from the air. It reproduces by spores and by spreading rhizoids.
Many ...