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\"Discover the secrets of moss. Unassuming yet beautiful, moss has been used for centuries in gardens, medicine, and handicrafts around the world. It is most often associated with damp, shady spaces, but can be found in the most unexpected and far-flung places in the world, from deserts to Antarctica. Moss is Swedish writer and plant artist Ulrica Nordström's celebration of this humble plant. Nordström introduces readers to the key varieties of moss and where they can be found, and tours some of the most beautiful moss gardens in Oregon, Sweden, and Japan, where moss-viewing has become a national phenomenon. She also teaches readers how to identify and gather different moss species, cultivate moss, tie Japanese moss balls (kokedama), and plant moss landscapes in pots and terrariums. With stunning photography and botanical illustrations, this unique book will be treasured by plant lovers of all kinds\"-- Provided by publisher.

Background and aimsKarst rocky desertification (KRD), a land degradation form which is widespread but unique to karst ecosystems, has become an ecological disaster in southwest China. Biocrusts play crucial roles in many ecological processes of the degraded ecosystems. However, little is known about the effects of biocrusts on soil properties and soil microbial communities in the progression of KRD. MethodsWe sampled soil beneath moss biocrusts and bare soil in four grades of KRD (none, light, moderate, and severe) to compare soil nutrients, soil microbial diversity, community composition, structure, and networks across the range of KRD progression.ResultsMoss biocrusts had a positive effect on all soil nutrients and buffered the negative effects of KRD progression compared to bare soil. Moss biocrusts significantly increased soil microbial richness but had little contribution to diversity and community composition. Both soil bacterial and fungal communities were significantly correlated with total and available phosphorus, total potassium, soil temperature, slope, and altitude. Soil bacterial and fungal communities showed different sensitivities and strategies in face of environmental degradation in KRD-affected ecosystems.ConclusionsMoss biocrust restoration could be used as a supplementary method in promoting ecological restoration in areas undergoing KRD due to their positive effects on soil nutrients and soil microbial richness. Our findings filled a knowledge gap pertaining to the microbial ecology of biocrust in regions experiencing KRD.

\"This book covers the essentials for creating an extraordinary moss garden. With profiles of the best mosses to grow and expert tips on planting and care, you can create fascinating combinations and establish a verdant oasis to enjoy for years to come\"-- Provided by publisher.

Purpose Epiphytic mosses play a crucial role in facilitating the decomposition of deadwood and regulating biogeochemical cycling processes in forests. However, the specific impact of epiphytic mosses on the deadwood decomposition process remains unclear. Methods We investigate the effect of epiphytic mosses on the changes in microbial community characteristics and physicochemical properties of five decay classes of Pinus massoniana deadwood. To ensure that our findings were not influenced by external environmental factors, we conducted greenhouse cultivation experiments. Results The decay class of deadwood and the presence of epiphytic moss had significant effects on total carbon, total nitrogen, carbon-nitrogen ratio, total phosphorus, total potassium, pH, and condensed tannin levels in deadwood. Furthermore, these two factors also significantly influenced the diversity and richness of the microbial community in deadwood. Notably, epiphytic moss exerts a stronger impact on bacterial community composition compared to fungal communities and decreased the complexity of microbial co-occurrence networks in deadwood. Total carbon and condensed tannin content were the most important factors affecting bacterial taxa, and total carbon, pH, total potassium, condensed tannin and cellulose content were the most important factors affecting fungal taxa. Conclusion Epiphytic mosses affect the process of deadwood decomposition by altering physicochemical properties and microbial community characteristics within the deadwood. Our study emphasizes the importance of considering the impact of epiphytic mosses in forest management practices aimed at enhancing the degradation of deadwood, with potential implications for promoting ecosystem sustainability.

We report the complete mitochondrial genome sequence of the flowering plant Amborella trichopoda. This enormous, 3.9-megabase genome contains six genome equivalents of foreign mitochondrial DNA, acquired from green algae, mosses, and other angiosperms. Many of these horizontal transfers were large, including acquisition of entire mitochondrial genomes from three green algae and one moss. We propose a fusion-compatibility model to explain these findings, with Amborella capturing whole mitochondria from diverse eukaryotes, followed by mitochondrial fusion (limited mechanistically to green plant mitochondria) and then genome recombination. Amborella's epiphyte load, propensity to produce suckers from wounds, and low rate of mitochondrial DNA loss probably all contribute to the high level of foreign DNA in its mitochondrial genome.

Surging incidents of air quality-related public health hazards, and environmental degradation, have prompted the global authorities to seek newer avenues of air quality monitoring, especially in developing economies, where the situation appears most alarming besides difficulties around ‘adequate’ deployment of air quality sensors. In the present narrative, we adopt a systematic review methodology (PRISMA, Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses ) around recent global literature (2002–2022), around moss-based passive biomonitoring approaches which might offer the regulatory authorities a complementary means to fill ‘gaps’ in existing air quality records. Following the 4-phased search procedure under PRISMA, total of 123 documents were selected for review. A wealth of research demonstrates how passive biomonitoring, with strategic use of mosses, could become an invaluable regulatory (and research) tool to monitor atmospheric deposition patterns and help identifying the main drivers of air quality changes (e.g., anthropogenic and/or natural). Besides individual studies, we briefly reflect on the European Moss Survey, underway since 1990, which aptly showcases mosses as ‘naturally occurring’ sensors of ambient air quality for a slew of metals (heavy and trace) and persistent organic pollutants, and help assessing spatio-temporal changes therein. To that end, we urge the global research community to conduct targeted research around various pollutant uptake mechanisms by mosses (e.g., species-specific interactions, environmental conditions, land management practices). Of late, mosses have found various environmental applications as well, such as in epidemiological investigations, identification of pollutant sources and transport mechanisms, assessment of air quality in diverse and complex urban ecosystems, and even detecting short-term changes in ambient air quality (e.g., COVID-19 Lockdown), each being critical for the authorities to develop informed and strategic regulatory measures. To that end, we review current literature and highlight to the regulatory authorities how to extend moss-based observations, by integrating them with a wide range of ecological indicators to assess regional environmental vulnerability/risk due to degrading air quality. Overall, an underlying motive behind this narrative was to broaden the current regulatory outlook and purview, to bolster and diversify existing air quality monitoring initiatives, by coupling the moss-based outputs with the traditional, sensor-based datasets, and attain improved spatial representation. However, we also make a strong case of conducting more targeted research to fill in the ‘gaps’ in our current understanding of moss-based passive biomonitoring details, with increased case studies.

Background The carbon sequestration potential and water retention capacity of peatlands are closely linked to the growth dynamics of Sphagnum mosses . However, few studies have focused on the response of Sphagnum moss growth dynamics to UV-B radiation, and existing research has emphasized species differences. In this study, Sphagnum palustre L., a dominant species in the peatlands of Southern China, was selected as a research subject, and its response to UV-B radiation has not been reported before. Results In the field, the morphology and growth differences of Sphagnum palustre under microhabitats with varying UV-B radiation intensities were monitored. Our findings revealed that the height of Sphagnum palustre increased the most in the microhabitats ( Juncus community) with the weakest UV-B radiation, however the capitate branch area and biomass of Sphagnum palustre were highest under the Fern community, where UV-B radiation was attenuated by 50% during the summer. In the laboratory, we established four levels of UV-B radiation treatments: 0 MJ/m 2 /d (control group, no UV-B radiation), 0.2 MJ/m 2 /d (low UV-B radiation), 0.4 MJ/m 2 /d (middle UV-B radiation), and 0.8 MJ/m 2 /d (high UV-B radiation). We investigated the effects of UV-B radiation intensity on the morphology, biomass, and water-holding capacity of Sphagnum palustre after exposing it to UV-B radiation for 30 days. Results indicated that low UV-B radiation (0.2 MJ/m 2 /d) significantly enhanced the growth of Sphagnum palustre. The capitulum area, plant height, capitulum biomass, and individual biomass of Sphagnum palustre increased by 14.60%, 1.27%, 10.98%, and 16.49%, respectively, compared to the control. Additionally, the maximum water absorption rate of Sphagnum palustre reached 4515.44%. In contrast, under high UV-B radiation (0.8 MJ/m²/d), these indicators significantly decreased, while the water loss rate significantly increased. Conclusion This study suggests that the intensity of UV-B radiation can be artificially regulated to optimize the growth of Sphagnum , accelerate peatland restoration, and enhance the yield of artificially cultivated Sphagnum moss .

Aims Desert regions are regarded as highly sensitive to climatic changes. In arid and semi-arid desert, photosynthetic organisms from biological soil crusts are poikilohydric and sensitive to fluctuations in precipitation. How do physiological properties such as concentration of biochemical constituents and enzymes respond to a precipitation gradient from semi-arid to arid desert regions? Methods We sampled cyanobacteria and moss crusts from four desert regions with distinctly different amounts of annual rainfall. Subsequently, the contents of photosynthetic pigments, malondialdehyde (MDA), osmotic adjustment substances, and antioxidative enzyme activities were correlated with the means of annual precipitation, evaporation, and temperature at the various sites. Results Crust type, precipitation level, and their interaction had significant influences on many physiological properties (photosynthetic pigments, proline, soluble sugar, and superoxide dismutase). The contents of soluble protein, proline, and soluble sugar of cyanobacteria/moss crusts decreased with increasing precipitation level. Superoxide dismutase and catalase activities of cyanobacteria crusts decreased significantly with increasing annual precipitation. No significant variations in MDA were observed between different precipitation regions in the two crusts. Conclusions Among the environmental variables tested, the annual amount of precipitation had the strongest effect on the physiological properties of moss/cyanobacteria crusts in different regions. Crust type combined with particular precipitation level influenced the physiological properties of crusts. Moreover, both moss and cyanobacteria crusts exhibited strong physiological adaptability to changes in precipitation. This result needs to be incorporated into future ecological models, which will help in understanding the function and vulnerability of biocrusts in the face of climate change.

Key messageComplete chloroplast genome sequence of a moss, Takakia lepidozioides (Takakiopsida) is reported. The largest collection of genes in mosses and the intensive RNA editing were discussed from evolutionary perspectives.We assembled the entire plastid genome sequence of Takakia lepidozioides (Takakiopsida), emerging from the first phylogenetic split among extant mosses. The genome sequences were assembled into a circular molecule 149,016 bp in length, with a quadripartite structure comprising a large and a small single-copy region separated by inverted repeats. It contained 88 genes coding for proteins, 32 for tRNA, four for rRNA, two open reading frames, and at least one pseudogene (tufA). This is the largest number of genes of all sequenced plastid genomes in mosses and Takakia is the only moss that retains the seven coding genes ccsA, cysA, cysT, petN rpoA, rps16 and trnPGGG. Parsimonious interpretation of gene loss suggests that the last common ancestor of bryophytes had all seven genes and that mosses lost at least three of them during their diversification. Analyses of the plastid transcriptome identified the extraordinary frequency of RNA editing with more than 1100 sites. We indicated a close correlation between the monoplastidy of vegetative tissue and the intensive RNA editing sites in the plastid genome in land plant lineages. Here, we proposed a hypothesis that the small population size of plastids in each vegetative cell of some early diverging land plants, including Takakia, might cause the frequent fixation of mutations in plastid genome through the intracellular genetic drift and that deleterious mutations might be continuously compensated by RNA editing during or following transcription.