On 15/4/08 18:03, in article ,
"Sacha" wrote:

snip

I'm afraid I'm no help to you but I'll forward your pic to David Poole and
see if he can help. Someone else may well get there beforehand, though.


From David Poole - not a Prostanthera!! ;-))

"It's a Selaginella - a close relative of the mosses and therefore allied to
the ferns as well. *Unfortunately, *I can't be certain of the species and
some idea of scale would greatly help identification, but is similar to S.
kraussiana, which is widely available in the nursery/garden centre trade.
However, it could also be S. apoda - a very much smaller growing species,
forming very tight hummocks at first before spreading out. *A 5p piece
alongside for scale would greatly help.

Being allied to mosses, these Selaginellas relish moist humid environments
and thrive in shade. *Some a quite hardy in the UK although the more
ornamental species are primarily grown as pot plants or used in terrariums
and bottle gardens. *They are easily increased by division of the clumps or
by inserting sections of stem into moist peaty compost. *One group of
Selaginellas is highly drought tolerant and can survive very long periods
without moisture. *These are the 'resurrection plants' and once placed in
water miraculously return to life. *S. lepidophylla is best known for this
although other 'desert species' such as S. rupestris are equally as drought
hardy."

--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'

Thank you so much for your help. I looked up the Saginella species
you mentioned and I believe that it is most likely the S. apoda.
Perhaps the S. krausianna, but I think the leaf shape resembles apoda
more.

Sorry I forgot to indicate the leaf size -- they are very small, about
2-4 mm in length. I've included links to more pictures though these
are not the best quality images. An inch ruler is included to give
you an idea of scale (sorry -- I'm in the U.S. and have no access to
pence pieces).

We are keeping the plant on the ledge in the shower where it gets
moderate filtered light, plus I think the plant will enjoy the
humidity.

Thanks again for your expert help!! It is much appreciated.


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/l...potted4-08.jpg

http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/l...tted4-0802.jpg

http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/l...tted4-0803.jpg