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Resurrection Plant

Ferns and Fern Allies

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Resurrection plant, Selaginella lepidophylla, is a spikemoss, a fern ally of the family Selaginellaceae, native to the Chihuahuan Desert of the southwestern United States and Mexico. It survives extreme drought by curling into a tight, apparently dead brown ball that can remain dormant for years, only to unfurl and turn green again within hours of rehydration, a trait that has made it a popular novelty plant sold dried and revived by the buyer at home.

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