English name: Girgensohn’s bog-moss
A bog-moss that grows in soft hummocks or extensive carpets. The shoots are green, yellow-green or straw-coloured shoots without any trace of red. The capitula tend to be flat-topped and clearly stellate. The stem is rather stiff and rigid and often snaps crisply when bent.
In Scotland, Sphagnum girgensohnii is widespread in damp woodland under Scots pine, birch and willow, in the shade of tall long heather on sheltered banks, and amongst rushes in marshes. BBS distribution map
Look out for Sphagnum russowii nearby.
Confusion species: Sphagnum fimbriatum, Sphagnum fallax
scottishlichens.co.uk 