Silene dioica |
Silene sargentii |
|
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red campion, red catchfly, silène dioïque |
Sargent's campion, Sargent's catchfly |
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Habit | Plants perennial; taproot slender. | Plants perennial; taproot stout; caudex much-branched, woody, producing many decumbent, leafy, short shoots and erect flowering shoots, often densely cespitose. |
Stems | ascending, decumbent at base, branched, shortly rhizomatous, to 80 cm, softly pubescent, ± glandular, at least distally, rarely subglabrous. |
erect, decumbent at base, simple, branched in flowering region, slender, 10–20(–25) cm, sparsely pubescent and glandular. |
Leaves | sessile at mid and distal stem, petiolate to spatulate proximally; petiole equaling or longer than blade of basal leaves; blade ovate to elliptic, 3–13 cm × 10–50 mm (not including petiole), apex acute to acuminate, sparingly pubescent, densely so on abaxial midrib. |
mostly basal; basal marcescent, densely tufted, long-petiolate, blade linear-oblanceolate, 1–3 cm × 0.5–3 mm, somewhat fleshy, setose-puberulent on both surfaces; cauline in 1–3 pairs proximal to inflorescence, reduced distally, blade linear, 1–4 cm × 0.5–2 mm. |
Inflorescences | dichasial cymes, several- to many-flowered, open, bracteate; bracts lanceolate, 4–20 × 2–7 mm, herbaceous, softly hairy throughout with long-septate hairs, not glandular, or with some glandular hairs. |
1–3-flowered, with terminal flower, usually with 1 or 2 flowers at proximal nodes. |
Pedicels | ascending, 0.2–3 cm, usually shorter than calyx. |
erect, sometimes slightly bent at apex, 1/4–2 times calyx, viscid glandular-puberulent, septa of hairs colorless. |
Flowers | unisexual, some plants having only staminate flowers, others having only pistillate flowers, 20–25 mm diam.; calyx 8–12-veined, campanulate, narrowly so in staminate flowers, broadly in pistillate, 10–15 × to 7 mm in flower, 11 mm broad in fruit, herbaceous, margins dentate, softly pubescent, lobes 5, erect, lanceolate, 2–3 mm; petals bright pink, clawed, claw equaling or longer than calyx, limb spreading horizontally, broadly obovate, unlobed or 2-lobed, to 12 × 12 mm, appendages 4, ca. 1 mm; stamens and stigmas equaling petal claw; styles 5. |
calyx prominently 10-veined, narrowly campanulate, ± umbilicate, not contracted proximally around carpophore, 9–18(–22) × 3–6 mm, papery, glandular-puberulent, viscid, hairs with colorless septa, veins parallel, purple, with pale commissures, lobes with midrib present, triangular, 2–3 mm, margins purple tinged, membranous, often broadened distally into round, crenulate lobe; corolla off-white, usually pink or purple tinged, to 11/2 times longer than calyx, limb 2-lobed, 2–3 mm, sometimes with 2 small lateral teeth, appendages 2, ovate, 1–1.5 mm; stamens slightly longer than calyx; styles 3(–5), equaling petals. |
Capsules | broadly ovoid to globose, equaling and often splitting calyx, opening by 5 (splitting into 10) revolute teeth; carpophore absent. |
included in calyx, opening by 6 (or 8 or 10) ascending teeth; carpophore 1.5–3 mm, woolly. |
Seeds | dark brown to black, broadly reniform, plump, 1–1.6 mm, densely and evenly papillate. |
brown, reniform, ca. 1.5 mm, rugose on both surfaces, margins with large, inflated papillae. |
2n | = 24. |
= 48. |
Silene dioica |
Silene sargentii |
|
Phenology | Flowering summer. | Flowering summer. |
Habitat | Woodlands, hedges, gardens, riverbanks, open waste places | Alpine grassy, gravelly, or rocky slopes and ridges, openings in subalpine forests, sagebrush, and on juniper slopes |
Elevation | 0-500 m (0-1600 ft) | 2400-3800 m (7900-12500 ft) |
Distribution |
CT; IA; IL; MA; MD; ME; MT; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; SD; VT; WA; WI; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; ON; QC; Europe [Introduced in North America]
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CA; ID; NV; WA
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Discussion | Silene dioica is closely related to S. latifolia and completely interfertile with it. The two species hybridize wherever they grow in close proximity, and the offspring (S. hampeana Meusel & K. Werner) usually have pale pink flowers. Silene dioica and S. latifolia are difficult to separate in herbarium material unless flower color has been noted. The characters that distinguish S. dioica are the usually dense, long, and soft pubescence covering at least the distal portion of the plant; the broad, almost globose, thin, and brittle capsule with revolute teeth; and the softer, thinner, usually broader leaves. Occasionally, double-flowered plants are encountered as garden escapes. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Silene sargentii is very similar to S. suksdorfii, but that species has purple-septate hairs on the calyx and pedicels, whereas those on S. sargentii are colorless (see M. A. T. Showers 1987). Also, the cauline leaves of S. suksdorfii are narrowly oblanceolate rather than linear, and the basal leaves are marcescent. Silene sargentii may be confused with S. bernardina and can intergrade with it in Nevada. However, that species is usually larger with a longer, tubular calyx and petals that are deeply divided into 4–6 narrow lobes, unlike S. sargentii, which has 2-lobed petals. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 5, p. 181. | FNA vol. 5, p. 202. |
Parent taxa | Caryophyllaceae > subfam. Caryophylloideae > Silene | Caryophyllaceae > subfam. Caryophylloideae > Silene |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Lychnis dioica, Lychnis rubra, Melandrium dioicum, Melandrium dioicum subsp. rubrum, Melandrium rubrum | Lychnis californica, S. lacustris, S. watsonii |
Name authority | (Linnaeus) Clairville: Man. Herbor. Suisse, 146. (1811) | S. Watson: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 14: 290. (1879) |
Web links |