• Seedless nonvascular
• Grow close to the ground to absorb nutrients
• Grow in most terrestrial habitats, even deserts
• Reproduce sexually or asexually (spores or fragmentation in some cases)
• Require abundant water for growth and reproduction, but can survive dry spells by drying out or holding amounts of water in dead cells
Barbella hypnales
Pyrrhobryum rhizogoniales
Pogonatum polytrichopsida

• Seedless nonvascular
• Typically small (2-20 cm wide, 10cm long); cover large patches of ground; rocks; or trees; single-celled rhizoids; thallus or leafy body
• Most common in tropical areas, but found in many other ecosystems
• Reproduce sexually or asexually by spores
• In ancient times it was believed they were medicinal, since they resemble the human liver
Lunularia cruciata
Marchantia polymorpha
Conocephalum conicum

• Seedless nonvascular
• Tall, narrow sporophytes embedded in top of plant; grows throughout life; small (1-2 cm across, 1-4 cm tall)
• Grow in tropical forests, along streamsides, disturbed fields
• Reproduce sexually by homospores, asexually by spores
Phaeoceros laevis
Dendroceros crispus
Phaeoceros carolinianus

• Seedless vascular
• Small (no taller than one meter); some species resemble small pine trees
• Grow in the tropics and temperate climates
• Reproduce by spores
• Interesting facts: their spores are highly flammable and have been used in fireworks; huperzine, a chemical isolated in Chinese club moss, is currently being researched to treat Alzheimer’s disease
Lycopodiella inundata
Lycopodiopsida diphasiastrum
Selaginella kraussiana

• Seedless vascular
• True roots, stems, and leaves; most are terrestrial, but some are epiphytic or aquatic, stems have a thick coat, rhizoids, roots are weak
• Found in moist environments, very few live in dry
• Sexual reproduction requires moisture, asexually reproduce by spores
Dicksonia antarctica
Adiantum lunulatum
Pyrrosia piloselloides

• Vascular seed plants (gymnosperms)
• Crown of large compound leaves, stout trunk, palm-like leaves
• Found in tropical and subtropical regions
• Dioecious (sexual reproduction)
Cycas rumphii
Encephalartos sclavoi
Cycas revoluta

• Vascular seed plants (gymnosperms)
• Fan-shaped leaves; up to 30 meters tall; can live for 1000 years; edible seeds
• Temperate or Mediterranean climates
• Dioecious (sexual reproduction), separate sexes (male and female trees)
• Only living species is Ginkgo biloba, which was kept alive by Buddhist monks who cultivated it for thousands of years
• Interesting fact: the Ginkgo biloba is resistant to pollution and pests, and is also believed to be a potential treatment for Alzheimer's disease
Ginkgo leaves in summer
Ginkgo pollenbearing cones
Ginkgo biloba

• Vascular seed plants (gymnosperms)
• Evergreen, needles, woody cones enclosing seeds, woody stems, in the form of trees or shrubs (mostly trees)
• Dioecious or monecious (sexual reproduction)
• Found in boreal forests
Needles and bud of Coast Douglasfir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)
Awl-like leaves of Cook
Pine (Araucaria
columnaris)
Scale leaves of
Lawson's Cypress
(Chamaecyparis
lawsoniana)

• Vascular seed plants (angiosperms)
• Non-motile sperm, seeds enclosed in fruit, various mechanisms of pollination and seed dispersal
• Found in all habitats that have plants
• Sexual reproduction by pollination
• Interesting fact: human life is dependent on angiosperms for food, clothing, and many other things we encounter on a daily basis
Liriodendron
tulipifera, yellow poplar
Cucumber tree,
Magnolia acuminata
Water lily, Nymphaea alba