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Mosses plants, facts about moss
Mosses plants are leafy plants that grow in moist, shady places.
Together with liverworts, mosses make up a division of simple plants
that botanists call Bryophta. There are roughly 15,000 kinds of
mosses in the world. They have no economic value, but are of
interest to biologists because the first land plants were probably
of this type. In addition, mosses are valuable as soil builders,
since they are among the first plants to colonize new land.
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Mosses plants, facts about moss |
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The moss Funaria is common on burned ground. Male and female organs occur at the tips of separate branches. After fertilization the spore-capsules develop |
The spores develop inside the capsule, and when ripe are discharged through the opening |
Mosses plants reproduce by means of spores. The spores are
carried in a capsule borne on a long stalk which arises from the
crown of a moss stem. The capsule commonly has a little lid, which
falls off when the spores are ripe, and a ring (or two rings) of
tiny teeth attached to the rim and pointing inwards. The teeth open
or close according to the amount of moisture in the air. In dry air,
the teeth are open and the spores are shaken out by the wind.

Mosses plants, facts about moss
A series of water-sensitive teeth control the opening of the capsule, so that spores are shed only in dry weather
A moss spore germinates into a highly branched, green, threadlike
body called a protonema. The protonema gives rise to several new
moss plants in a small clump. When the moss plants are mature, the
tips of the stems and branches develop sex organs. In wet weather
the male cells are released, and swim to the female cells and
fertilize them.
The fertilized female cell develops a long stalk
bearing a spore capsule at its top.
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