About Diphasiastrum alpinum (L.) Holub
Diphasiastrum alpinum (L.) Holub has stems 30 to 50 centimeters long, with branches 3 to 5 centimeters long. Its stems are upright, four-sided, and grow densely in branched clumps. The leaves are small, scale-like, overwintering, and grow parallel to the stem, with hollow bases. Spore cases are borne in sessile, densely cylindrical spore cones that are 1 to 1.5 centimeters long. Female stems produce strobili up to 3 centimeters (1 inch) long. This species can hybridize with Diphasiastrum sitchense. It has a circumpolar distribution across most of the northern regions of the Northern Hemisphere, including much of Canada, the northwestern United States, northern and central Europe, Russia, China, and Japan. It acts as an indicator of alpine tundra and boreal climates, and occurs in mountains and moors, often growing alongside Calluna and grasses.
