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Pyxidanthera barbulata

Big Pyxie · Common Pyxie-moss · Flowering Pixiemoss

Family DiapensiaceaeGenus Pyxidanthera

A low mat of tiny needle-like leaves dotted with small white five-petalled flowers and pink buds
FlowerNC WetlandsCC BY 4.0
A line drawing of a creeping mat of short stiff leaves with small five-petalled flowers along it, with a leaf, a seed capsule and a cut flower drawn below.
IllustrationBritton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An illustrated flora of the northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions. 3 vols. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York. Vol. 2: 706. Courtesy of Kentucky Native Plant Society. Scanned by Omnitek Inc.Public domain

About the plant

What it is and where it grows — not part of any germination protocol.

Habit
subshrubPlants of the World Online
Habit
Perennial, Forb/herb, SubshrubPLANTS Database
Flower
WhiteWikipedia
Native range
New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, VirginiaGBIF Backbone Taxonomy

Toxicity is noted only where a source states it. No note here is not a finding of safety.

Sources: Plants of the World Online — Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; PLANTS Database — USDA NRCS; Wikipedia — Wikipedia contributors; GBIF Backbone Taxonomy — Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Worth knowing

  • Flowering pixiemoss is not a moss but a low, mat-forming subshrub whose stems root where they touch the ground. It grows near the east coast of the United States, from Long Island to South Carolina. Wikipedia: Pyxidanthera barbulata

This source reports two treatments. Both are shown.

Protocol 1

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1993

Difficulty Moderate Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around October 23, 2027 for a May 3 last frost. Too late for spring 2027 — that needed starting on October 22, 2026.

  1. Cold moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 40°F 4°C Light: either

    1 germinated in this phase.

  2. Warm moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 70°F 21°C Light: either

about 3 months from start to step 2. Germination happens during step 2, in 75 days.

34% germination in 3–75 days.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed. — N. C. Deno, 1993 · Ch. 20, Pyxidanthera p. 202Public domain
Show the original text
Pyxidanthera (Diapensiaceae). P. barbulata seed collected in June and sown immediately germ. 70(27% in 7-9 w) and 40(1%)-70(34% in 3-75 d). Light had no effect. Seed DS 6 m at 70 germ. less and the seedlings seemed weaker.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed., Ch. 20, Pyxidanthera p. 202. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 2

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1993

Difficulty High Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around February 1, 2027 for a May 3 last frost.

  1. Sow and cover

    Temperature: 70°F 21°C Light: either

No stated waiting before sowing. Then 63 days to germinate.

27% germination in 49–63 days.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed. — N. C. Deno, 1993 · Ch. 20, Pyxidanthera p. 202Public domain
Show the original text
Pyxidanthera (Diapensiaceae). P. barbulata seed collected in June and sown immediately germ. 70(27% in 7-9 w) and 40(1%)-70(34% in 3-75 d). Light had no effect. Seed DS 6 m at 70 germ. less and the seedlings seemed weaker.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed., Ch. 20, Pyxidanthera p. 202. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

How each step is done, in Deno’s words, and what Verified and Derived mean.

Germination trials

Readers’ own records of sowing this species, published after review. Share your trial · All trials

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