Running Clubmoss

Lycopodium clavatum

Found in openings, balds, roadbanks, open forests. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

Modest

Native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height: 4–10 inches
Light: Deep shade, Partial shade
Soil moisture: Somewhat dry to moist

Lycopodium clavatum — fruit photograph — no rights reserved · CC0 · Original photograph

Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source

Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.

At a glance

Life cycle: Perennial
Leaves: Evergreen
Bloom: July to September

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Not yet recorded · Spread

Recorded in 1 Alabama county.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 3

Grassy bald on a high ridge. Shown: Round Bald, Mitchell County, North Carolina and Carter County, Tennessee, a neighboring state.Round Bald, Alan M. Cressler / U.S. Geological Survey, undated. Public domain. Source record. Faithful JPEG display decode of embedded JP2; no AI or color enhancement. Phone derivative resized proportionally.

Named place / source context. Shown: Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, Georgia, a neighboring state.Trail on Little Kennesaw Mountain., Unidentified in HFC record, undated. Public domain. Source record.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

0CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL

0BeesSoutheastern regional records

0Specialist beesPollen specialists

1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Lycopodium

Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey

Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Lycopodiaceae
Hardiness: Zones 2a–8b
Soil pH: Acidic
Flower color: Not applicable

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “July to September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Flower color · “Not applicable” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Hardiness · “Zones 2a–8b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Height · “4–10 inches” · Minnesota Wildflowers
Leaves · “Evergreen” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Light · “Deep shade (less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Soil · “Moist; Occasionally dry” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Soil pH · “Acidic” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox

Conservation status

Alabama rank	S1
Global rank	G5
AL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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