Just the thing for your liver.

I came across these liverworts on damp soil down by the local burn. I vividly remember seeing my first liverworts as a child when fetching water for my goldfish from the village spring and I have enjoyed the beauty of these ancient plants ever since. Their name derives from their lobed, liver-shaped leaves. In past times plants used as medicines were often known as wort; liverworts were, as you might imagine, thought to be effective against liver disorders.

Most liverworts can reproduce vegetatively (without any messy sex); when drops of water hit the raised cups on the liverwort's surface, tiny pieces of tissue called gemmae are splashed out. If you zoom in you can make out the gemmae in the cups, awaiting a falling raindrop. If they land in a moist area, they will grow into a new plant.

When the mood takes them liverworts can also reproduce sexually, in a very complex manner. I will keep my eyes open and see what they get up to in the coming days.