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apetalous catchfly, mountain campion, nodding campion, Spalding's campion

Habit Plants perennial, cespitose or not; taproot stout.
Stems

erect, branched or simple, 5–40 cm, glabrous or pubescent.

Leaves

basal few or numerous, petiolate, blade narrowly oblanceolate, spatulate, 1–13 cm × 1–7 mm, margins ciliate, glabrous or pubescent;

cauline in 1–5 pairs, sessile, much reduced distally, blade linear to lanceolate, 0.1–4 cm × 1–5 mm.

Pedicels

slender or stout.

Flowers

erect or nodding;

calyx prominently 10-veined, ovate-elliptic to broadly campanulate, inflated, 11–18 × 6–13 mm, thin and papery, veins purple or brown, lobes ovate to triangular, 2–3 mm;

corolla dingy pink, purple, or red, claw shorter than to equaling calyx, limb not differentiated from claw, ovate or obovate, unlobed to 2-lobed, 1–4 mm;

stamens shorter than petals;

styles 5, shorter than petals.

Capsules

equaling to slightly longer than calyx, opening by 10 recurved teeth;

carpophore 1–2 mm.

Seeds

brown or sooty brown, broadly winged, round to ± angular, 1.5–2.5 mm diam. including wing.

Silene uralensis

Distribution
from FNA
AK; CO; MT; UT; WY; AB; BC; MB; NL; NT; NU; ON; QC; YT; Canada; Greenland; nw United States including Alaska; e Asia (Russian Far East, Siberia)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Subspecies 3 (3 in the flora).

Silene uralensis is a very variable species complex. Recently, A. Kurtto (2001) has resurrected S. wahlbergella as a species distinct from S. uralensis, differing in its shorter petals and larger capsule. It appears to be confined to Scandanavia and adjoining arctic Russia. North American reports of S. wahlbergella (and its synonym Lychnis apetala) are all referable to S. uralensis.

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

Key
1. Inflorescences usually simple, pedicels slender with single nodding (deflexed) flower (fruiting pedicels erect); seeds 1.5-2(-2.5) mm diam. (incl. broad wing).
subsp. uralensis
1. At least some of the inflorescences branched with 2 to several flowers, pedicels erect to angled but not deflexed except at tip in flower; seeds 2-2.5 mm diam
→ 2
2. Stems usually glabrous to sparsely, rarely pubescent, (15-)20-40 cm, slender; inflorescences branched with (1-)2-10 flowers; corolla only slightly exceeding calyx
subsp. ogilviensis
2. Stems densely pubescent with purple-septate hairs, 10-35 cm, stout; at least some inflorescences forked with 1-3(-4) flowers; corolla usually ca. 11/ 2 times calyx
subsp. porsildii
Source FNA vol. 5, p. 209.
Parent taxa 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. scaposa, S. scouleri, S. seelyi, S. serpentinicola, S. sibirica, S. sorensenis, S. spaldingii, S. stellata, S. subciliata, S. suecica, S. suksdorfii, S. thurberi, S. verecunda, S. virginica, S. viscaria, S. vulgaris, S. williamsii, S. wrightii
Subordinate taxa
S. uralensis subsp. ogilviensis, S. uralensis subsp. porsildii, S. uralensis subsp. uralensis
Synonyms Gastrolychnis uralensis
Name authority (Ruprecht) Bocquet: Candollea 22: 25. (1967)
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