selaginella

British  

/ ˌsɛlədʒɪˈnɛlə /

noun

1. any club moss of the genus Selaginella, having stems covered in small pointed leaves and small spore-bearing cones: family Selaginellaceae See also resurrection plant

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Etymology

Origin of selaginella

C19: from New Latin, diminutive of Latin selāgō plant similar to the savin

Example Sentences

"If you loved me," she said trimly, watching the white fingers she plunged among the green branches of a selaginella, "could you write the things you do to me?"

From In the Days of the Comet by Wells, H. G. (Herbert George)

The spines are produced in great abundance, and they may be cut freely; their effect is unique when used for table decoration, stuck in tufts of dark green selaginella.

From Hardy Perennials and Old Fashioned Flowers Describing the Most Desirable Plants, for Borders, Rockeries, and Shrubberies. by Wood, John

The room was prettily decorated with the racing jackets and caps of the riders in the races, and with scarlet wreaths of geranium and hibiscus mingled with lycopodium ferns and selaginella.

From A Voyage in the 'Sunbeam' Our Home on the Ocean for Eleven Months by Brassey, Annie