Dr M’s Marvellous Mosses: 5 Grimmiales
Dr M loves Grimmiales, well it’s such a wonderful bryological name! And a great big order of epiphytic acrocarpous mosses of walls and rocks and boulders and related habitats.
Dr M’s Marvellous Mosses: 4 Pottiales
Dr M is potty about Pottiales, partly because it can be a tricky group to deal with, partly because it is a common and widespread group of acrocarps so it is an important order of mosses and partly just because Pottiales is such a great name!
Dr M’s Marvellous Mosses: 3 Dicranales
This is a rather characteristic order of acrocarpous mosses recognised by the generally very long, narrow leaves.
Dr M’s Marvellous Mosses: 2 Fissidentales
A really very characteristic group of mosses, the genus Fissidens often being mistaken for leafy liverworts by beginning students due to the complanate (flattened) shoots, and the leaves in two-ranks.
Dr M’s Marvellous Mosses: 1 Polytrichales
The Polytrichales is a characteristic order of acrocarpous mosses with robust, narrow leaves and a transparent sheathing base and with longitudinal lamellae on upper (adaxial) surface
Dr M’s Birthday Bryum!
So, what was Dr M doing on his birthday? Well, after a quick shufty at his birthday cards, including a very cheeky one from young nieces and nephew, off he went to check out some marvellous mosses – including a lovely birthday Bryum – for his forthcoming series on bryophytes! Coming to drmgoeswild.com soon: Dr M’s guide to common orders of mosses and liverworts! Watch
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Dr M’s Spring term ID test: bryophytes
Recently, Dr M ran a Spring term plant ID test for his MSc students at University of Reading and has posted the results of Part 1 (vascular plants). Here Dr M posts Part 2 of the test: the bryophytes – the group of lower plants which includes the mosses and liverworts. There were ten species in total: three species to be identified without books
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Dr M reviews five plant ID guides
Dr M has previously posted reviews of the two indispensable eXtreme botanical books: the veg key and the book of Stace. The eXtreme botanist just cannot be without these on their shelves. But also important are the illustrated plant ID guides to supplement the advanced ID books. You need to be able to check determinations against descriptions of the plant in the floras but also
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Moss (and Lichen) in Nature photo competition
Dr M is particularly fond of mosses and was delighted to find on the British Bryological Society Facebook page a link to this Moss in Nature Competition from Digital Photography Review.
Dr M takes bryological floristry into the Dragon’s Den!
Dr M is developing a new botanical business concept – eXtreme bryology meets artistic floristry and the result is Bryo-Logical Floristry!