A worldwide group of ancient nonvascular plants forming flat green ribbons or tiny leafy mats, among the oldest land plants in the fossil record.
Description
Common liverwort grows as a flat lobed green thallus that spreads across damp soil. It reproduces with tiny umbrella-shaped sexual structures and disk-like gemma cups full of asexual buds.
Cultivation
Liverworts thrive on bare moist soil in shaded greenhouses, pots, and forest paths. Gardeners often regard them as weeds because they crust over the surface of waterlogged pots.
Uses
Some species, especially Marchantia, are model organisms in plant genetics. Folk medicine once applied liverwort to liver complaints based on the leaf shape, the original doctrine of signatures.
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Liverwort starts with L and ends with T. Browse other plants along the same letter.
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