Plants moved onto land from water

The ancestors of land plants evolved in water. The first land plants appeared around 450 million years ago and were probably similar to bryophytes.

Plant Evolution on Land

In the Carboniferous, horsetails such as Asterophyllites proliferated in swampy forests.

Then forests took over

Later, plants developed familiar features like roots, leaves, and wood. By the Carboniferous, swampy forests were dominated by giant clubmosses and horsetails, some as large as trees.

Plant Evolution on Land