Species library › Selaginella › Selaginella elmeri
Terrarium Partly documented

Selaginella elmeri

Selaginella elmeri is a Philippine spikemoss described by Hieronymus in 1911 from A.D.E. Elmer's collections. Like most tropical Selaginella it grows on shaded, damp forest floors and banks, and needs constant humidity and low light to keep its fronds from shrivelling.

Selaginella elmeri
Photo: Daderot, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day Warm-growingTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Very humid airBand in Plantistry
Light ShadeDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
No rest periodGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

Terrestrial on moist soil, banks and rocks in shaded forest; the specific microhabitat is not documented beyond the genus pattern.

Records range from near sea level to about 1700 m; most are in the lowlands.

Philippines

🔒 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

Grow Selaginella elmeri? Add it to a free garden and its full profile opens. Pro opens all 38,374 profiles in the library, plants and fungi.

Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its Public domain licence, unmodified.