Species library › Selaginella › Selaginella caffrorum
Terrarium Well documented

Selaginella caffrorum

Selaginella caffrorum is a cushion-forming spikemoss of rock sheets, cliff crevices and shallow soil over sandstone and quartzite in the grassland highlands of South Africa and Lesotho, with records north to East Africa. It grows in full sun to part shade in a climate with a warm wet summer and a cold, nearly rainless winter, which it almost certainly survives dried out. Grow it bright, open and gritty with wet-dry cycles, not in a closed terrarium.

At home, aim for
Day Cool-growingTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Dry airBand in Plantistry
Light Full sunDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
Expects a seasonal restGrows on rock (lithophyte)

Where it grows wild

Herbarium records place it in crevices of cliffs, on sandstone sheetrock and in shallow, well-drained soil on hill summits and mountain slopes in the Grassland biome, in full sun or partial shade; also on sun-exposed quartzite rock faces in Rwanda. It forms low cushions.

Records with elevations run from about 1,130 m upward, median 1,600 m; the Lesotho sites are near 1,650–2,400 m.

South AfricaLesothoTanzaniaKenyaRwandaBurundiNamibia

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app.