# I'm a selaginella serial killer



## Firawen (Jan 29, 2012)

How does everyone keep this stiff alive? I kill it every single time I get it, which is a shame since it's so cool.

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## Wim van den Berg (Mar 5, 2012)

We don,t  we all have plastic specimens so your the only one who,s ever trying real Selaginella,s
Ther are so many different species and a lot are easy to grow but some of the compact like selaginella,s are more difficult , and need more care with watering. do you have names or pictures of the one you allready kil, and do you have a license for it... like 007


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## frogface (Feb 20, 2010)

I have managed to keep it alive purely by accident. I found a gigantic basket of it for sale at Lowes and bought it even though I was sure I would kill it all, because, I always do. 

I put it into a 10g tank with a single tinc resident. Since the basket was large, I was able to plant it densely in the tank. The tank has a single 1" screened vent across the back and a small reading lamp with an LED bulb (the original bulb meant for the lamp, not something fancy) that bends over it. The background is clay, the substrate is my own mix of bark, charcoal and whatever else I had on hand, the leaf litter is oak and magnolia. 

Anyway, this stuff is growing like crazy and I have to keep cutting it back! I do not know why. The lighting is not strong enough to light up the tank but the moss does grow thicker where the light is more intense. I don't mist the tank often because it is small and the clay keeps it humid. So, maybe light and less water? 

Oh yea, I put some in a grow out tank for another tinc. When we had some particularly hot weather, I turned off his light. The moss was the only plant in there and, since I had a ton of it, I blanketed the bottom of his tank with it, over the leaf litter. So, after a few days without light, it started dying off fast. Turned the light back on and the moss recovered pretty quickly. So, yea, I'm saying it's all about light intensity. I think. 

I'll try to remember to take a picture tonight when I get home.


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## Dane (Aug 19, 2004)

I've had good luck with kraussiana and plana. I use some sand in my mix, which seems to help, and they do best in really humid tanks with some air movement. Lighting is a dual t-8 fixture.


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## Firawen (Jan 29, 2012)

Dane said:


> I've had good luck with kraussiana and plana. I use some sand in my mix, which seems to help, and they do best in really humid tanks with some air movement. Lighting is a dual t-8 fixture.


I've killed krausina in a similar setup minus the sand.

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## ndame88 (Sep 24, 2010)

I thought I was doing good with it, until I planted it in my new viv, it pretty much melted.


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## greenman857 (Dec 13, 2010)

I've actually had really good luck with it even in wet conditions. I wonder if it takes a while to acclimatize to a different situation. Here's a pic of it growing on a rock in a tub in my greenhouse. The rock is quite porous so that helps!
The other plant is a miniature horsetail I picked up somewhere.
I also grow S. apoda to which is a really cool tiny species. But can't seem to find a pic ATM


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## Sammie (Oct 12, 2009)

Try _Selaginella uncinata_, it seems to be indestructible and grows like a weed.
Good looking too


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## Nismo95 (Jul 30, 2011)

I have noticed the few times I have tried using sal's was it took time. There was the initial die off, than it would come back and take over like a wild fire. I also never separate it or have cuttings.. I get potted portions and clean the soil off and just plant in the substrate. Misting 3x daily for 20 sec each and they usually do well for me.


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## JoshH (Feb 13, 2008)

Try to find S. plana and the one going around as S. flabellata (tall, climbing) both are very easy.


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## epiphytes etc. (Nov 22, 2010)

Every Seleginella I try either dies off immediately, or explodes with growth immediately. No middle ground. I used to have some krausiana in my azureus tank, and when it would start to get too big, instead of cutting it back, I would simply smash it all back into the corner. This made it incredibly dense and attractive, especially since this species can be rather rangy.


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## epiphytes etc. (Nov 22, 2010)

Hey, greenman, how tall does that Equisetum get?


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## greenman857 (Dec 13, 2010)

I guess about 6" max.
Here's another pic


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## greenman857 (Dec 13, 2010)

Here's Selaginella apoda, growing at the water edge. along with Dwarf Hair Grass, Dwarf Lobelia, Lilaeopsis and a variety of other plants


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## greenman857 (Dec 13, 2010)

The tub Selaginella general tub habitat


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## Groundhog (Dec 17, 2006)

Whoah Nellie.... 

OP: First, can we please see a picture of your set up?!?

I am no expert, but "this stuff" is way too broad a question--it is like asking "how does one keep lizards alive "or "birds alive..." Which selaginella(s) are you trying to grow?

Selaginellas, which are actually more primitive than ferns, are variable plants. Some like moist forests, some swamps, some grow in more xeric areas. _S. plana_ is good choice for wetter tanks, if a bit rangy.

Selaginellas are polymorphic plants, meaning they take on different forms in different conditions. I grow _S. uncinata_ in the ground (7B), and it forms tighter rosettes. In the sun it turns reddish; in shade the more familiar blue. 

So Groundhog, it doesn't need high humidity?!? Here in NYC, outside in the ground, near the ground, is high %#@$! humidity. What it is not is saturated.

Of course, most do better in terraria than on coffee tables. A few simple tips:

--Good drainage. Plant these in well-drained areas, not muck. Maybe an ABG-type mix amended with a bit of sand, as mentioned above. If they choose to ramble towards wetter areas, the new growth will be adapted to it. _S. uncinata_ will happily range right into the water. But I can assures ya, buy a nice, rooted selaginella, plant right in the muck, watch it quickly melt--I guarantee it.
--Good humidity. However, not all are the same when it comes to getting wet. Whether you can mist the plants directly really depends on the species. _S. plana_ tolerates more more moisture than _S. kraussina_; _S. erythropus_ in-between (but closer to plana). 
--While they tolerate lower light levels, most prefer higher light than one 
might think (Outdoors, uncinata takes part sun). Some will actually color up nicely.

Hope this helps.


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## epiphytes etc. (Nov 22, 2010)

Got any pics of your outdoor unicata?


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## Groundhog (Dec 17, 2006)

Selaginella uncinata, Adiantum venustum, Hemiboea subcapitata, Ophiopogon in situ (da Bronx)


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