The Rose of Jericho Resurrection Plant

Selaginella lepidophylla

-article by melaniekaren

I Discovered this Wildly Exotic Plant, The Rose of Jericho

image credit - photo by melaniekaren
This is how the Rose of Jericho looks closed.

I cannot express enough how excited I am to discover this plant.

It is commonly called the Rose of Jericho, and its scientific name is Selaginella lepidophylla. It also goes by other names, such as The Resurrection Plant, Mary’s Plant and The Dinosaur Plant.

Perhaps you’ve heard of it? I had not, and I am excited to share my experience of this plant with you. It is amazing and extremely unusual. With all of my past botany classes and general interest in plants, I am surprised I had not come across it until now.

I was visiting Salem, Massachusetts about a week ago. It was a quiet Sunday early afternoon, and I was enjoying browsing around several of the shops. In one of the shops, an employee kindly approached me and asked if I would like to see a really neat, cool item that they had just received. I could tell he was excited. So, of course I said yes. I’m thrilled he showed me this plant. For me, it is wildly unique. It’s ancient, but one could almost believe it to be an evolutionary, advanced organism.

Pictured above is exactly how I purchased my Jericho rose. It’s all dried and appears to have died. I had taken this photo immediately upon returning home from Salem. This plant is amazing because that plant pictured is alive.

click pic to see on AMAZON
-six of them for under $25 makes
these a great gift!

Why is the Rose of Jericho So Wildly Exciting and Exotic?
-because it seems to come back from the dead! That’s why!

After I got home from Salem and took the photo of the plant closed, I followed the instructions per the employee of what to do with my Jericho plant. I was already excited about knowing what was to come next and that it can happen over and over as many times as you like for decades and decades. However, as I started following the instructions, my excitement grew.

I filled a shallow dish with water and placed the Jericho rose within. I knew that it would spring to life, as this was already explained to me. Patience is not something I’m always good with when I’m excited for something to happen. So, I decided to just try to forget about it and go on with my day. I had simply assumed that this re-opening and coming back to life of the plant would take several days. Well, not 20 minutes later, the plant caught my eye.

image credit - photo by melaniekaren
Now, look at this little monster opening up!

Now this picture is the plant at only 20 minutes of being placed in water. As you can see, it is uncurling and appearing to come alive. It’s like watching a plant move, and there is something eerie about it. I was in shock and called my son to come over quickly. (He’s just turned 12.) As my excitement grew, his excitement grew. We both stood there watching this plant open while having a nice drink of water. All I could think is that this little monster must have been really thirsty.

I was not expecting it to open this quickly at all, and don’t you think my photo looks like a little monster plant? I know it’s commonly called the Jericho of Rose Resurrection Plant, but to me, until I get used to this little plant readily opening and closing, it will be my zombie plant.

Within Only Hours, My Jericho Rose is Green and Flourishing:

image credit - photo by melaniekaren