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Blue Mountain catchfly, Robinson's catchfly, stem campion

Hooker's campion, Hooker's catchfly, Hooker's Indian pink, Hooker's silene

Habit Plants perennial, subscapose, cespitose; taproot stout; caudex branched, woody. Herbs, perennial; caudex much-branched, thick and woody.
Stems

several, erect, simple, 15–50 cm, puberulent, viscid-glandular distally.

solitary or numerous, decumbent and rooting at base, becoming erect, 5–14(–25) cm, with gray, soft, curly to retrorsely crispate pubescence, rarely glandular.

Leaves

mostly basal;

basal marcescent, long-petiolate, densely tufted, blade 1-veined, narrowly oblanceolate, 2–10(–20) cm × 2–12(–20) mm, not fleshy, base tapering to petiole, apex acute to obtuse, finely puberulent on both surfaces;

cauline in 1–3 pairs, sessile, much reduced, blade linear-lanceolate, not fleshy.

blade spatulate or narrowly lanceolate to oblanceolate, sometimes broadly so, 4–7(–10) cm × 8–12(–20) mm, reduced toward base, apex acute, pubescent on both surfaces, especially on midrib;

subterranean bractlike, papery.

Inflorescences

1–5(–7)-flowered, with terminal flower and lateral, open, pedunculate cymes often reduced to single flowers, bracteate;

bracts narrowly lanceolate, 3–10(–20) mm.

reduced to single, terminal flower or open, (1–)3–5(–9)-flowered cyme, bracteate;

bracts leaflike, reduced distally to ca. 1 cm.

Pedicels

erect, elongate, 0.5–4.5 cm, glandular-puberulent.

ascending, straight, 1–6 cm, with a short canescence.

Flowers

calyx prominently 10-veined, those to lobes lance-shaped broadened and thickened distally, commissural veins slender, not forked distally, campanulate, 10–12 × 3.5–5 mm in flower, enlarging to 15 × 10 mm in fruit, not contracted around carpophore, papery, margins dentate, glandular-pubescent, viscid, veins parallel, with pale commissures, lobes patent, ovate, 1.5–4 mm, rigid, margins broad, membranous;

corolla off-white to dingy purple-red, clawed, claw exceeding calyx, ciliate proximally, broadened distally, limbs erect, 2–4-lobed, less than 1/2 length of calyx, lobes 2–5 mm, appendages 2–4, 0.5–1 mm;

stamens slightly exserted;

filaments lanate, expanded at base;

styles 3–5, ± equaling calyx.

calyx 10-veined, broadly tubular in flower, 12–25  5–8 mm, turbinate in fruit and swelling in middle to ca. 10 mm broad, canescent, rarely sparsely pubescent or glandular;

lobes lanceolate, 4–7 mm, with narrow, membranous margins, apex acute;

corolla coral pink or white, clawed, claw equaling calyx;

limb 4-lobed, usually deeply so, rarely 2-lobed with smaller lateral teeth, lobes 7–22 mm, appendages 2, linear, 1.5–3.5 mm (absent in subsp. bolanderi);

stamens slightly longer than corolla claw;

stigmas 3, slightly longer than corolla claw.

Capsules

slightly longer than calyx, opening by 3–5 teeth;

carpophore 1.5–2.5 mm.

ovoid to oblong, equaling calyx, dehiscing by 6 teeth;

carpophore 2–5 mm.

Seeds

brown, reniform, 1.2–2 mm, margins with large, inflated papillae, rugose on sides.

dark brown to black, reniform, ca. 2 mm broad, with concentric rings of small papillae.

2n

= 48.

Silene scaposa

Silene hookeri

Phenology Flowering early summer.
Habitat Subalpine grassy, gravelly, or rocky slopes, ponderosa pine forests, juniper scrub, sagebrush
Elevation 900-3000 m (3000-9800 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CO; ID; NV; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Silene scaposa is a very distinct species with its subscapose inflorescence, coronalike ring of short petals, and distended fruiting calyx in which the veins to the lobes are markedly broadened and lanceolate. Variation in lobing of the corolla has been the basis for recognizing two varieties: var. scaposa (var. typica C. L. Hitchcock & Maguire), which has two-lobed petals, and var. lobata, which has four-lobed petals. However, these differences appear to be of little significance.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Corolla lobes either 4 of unequal size or 2 with lateral teeth, lobes lanceolate to broadly oblong, 5-10 mm, corolla coral pink or white, appendages 2, 1.5-3.5 mm, linear
subsp. hookeri
1. Corolla lobes 4, equal, linear, 15-25 mm, corolla white with greenish center, appendages absent
subsp. bolanderi
Source FNA vol. 5, p. 202. FNA vol. 5, p. 186.
Parent taxa Caryophyllaceae > subfam. Caryophylloideae > Silene Caryophyllaceae > subfam. Caryophylloideae > Silene
Sibling taxa
S. acaulis, S. antirrhina, S. aperta, S. armeria, S. bernardina, S. bridgesii, S. campanulata, S. caroliniana, S. chalcedonica, S. conica, S. coniflora, S. conoidea, S. coronaria, S. csereii, S. dichotoma, S. dioica, S. douglasii, S. drummondii, S. flos-cuculi, S. gallica, S. grayi, S. hitchguirei, S. hookeri, S. invisa, S. involucrata, S. kingii, S. laciniata, S. latifolia, S. lemmonii, S. marmorensis, S. menziesii, S. nachlingerae, S. nivea, S. noctiflora, S. nuda, S. occidentalis, S. oregana, S. ostenfeldii, S. ovata, S. parishii, S. parryi, S. pendula, S. petersonii, S. plankii, S. polypetala, S. pseudatocion, S. rectiramea, S. regia, S. repens, S. rotundifolia, S. sargentii, S. scouleri, S. seelyi, S. serpentinicola, S. sibirica, S. sorensenis, S. spaldingii, S. stellata, S. subciliata, S. suecica, S. suksdorfii, S. thurberi, S. uralensis, S. verecunda, S. virginica, S. viscaria, S. vulgaris, S. williamsii, S. wrightii
S. acaulis, S. antirrhina, S. aperta, S. armeria, S. bernardina, S. bridgesii, S. campanulata, S. caroliniana, S. chalcedonica, S. conica, S. coniflora, S. conoidea, S. coronaria, S. csereii, S. dichotoma, S. dioica, S. douglasii, S. drummondii, S. flos-cuculi, S. gallica, S. grayi, S. hitchguirei, S. invisa, S. involucrata, S. kingii, S. laciniata, S. latifolia, S. lemmonii, S. marmorensis, S. menziesii, S. nachlingerae, S. nivea, S. noctiflora, S. nuda, S. occidentalis, S. oregana, S. ostenfeldii, S. ovata, S. parishii, S. parryi, S. pendula, S. petersonii, S. plankii, S. polypetala, S. pseudatocion, S. rectiramea, S. regia, S. repens, S. rotundifolia, S. sargentii, S. scaposa, S. scouleri, S. seelyi, S. serpentinicola, S. sibirica, S. sorensenis, S. spaldingii, S. stellata, S. subciliata, S. suecica, S. suksdorfii, S. thurberi, S. uralensis, S. verecunda, S. virginica, S. viscaria, S. vulgaris, S. williamsii, S. wrightii
Subordinate taxa
S. hookeri subsp. bolanderi, S. hookeri subsp. hookeri
Synonyms S. scaposa var. lobata
Name authority B. L. Robinson: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 28: 145. (1893) Nuttall: in J. Torrey and A. Gray, Fl. N. Amer. 1: 193. (1838)
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