Stellaria longifolia
long-leaf starwort, long-leaf stitchwort, stellaire à longues feuilles
erect or straggling, branched, square, 10–35 cm, glabrous but angles minutely papillate-scabrid.
sessile;
blade green to yellowish green, never glaucous, linear to very narrowly elliptic, widest at or beyond middle, 0.8–4 cm × 1–3 mm, not coriaceous, base attenuate, apex acuminate to acute, glabrous to sparingly ciliate at base, margins minutely papillate-scabrid;
proximal leaves shorter and wider.
terminal, widely divaricate, 2–many-flowered cymes;
bracts lanceolate, 1–5 mm, scarious, apex acuminate.
straight or somewhat arcuate, commonly 3–30 mm, glabrous or scabrous.
5–9 mm diam.;
sepals 5, obscurely 3-veined, ovate-elliptic, 2–4 mm, margins scarious, apex acute, glabrous;
petals 5, 2–3.5 mm, ± equaling sepals;
stamens 5–10;
styles 3, ascending, ca. 1 mm.
blackish purple or straw colored, ovoid-conic, 3–6 mm, much longer than sepals, opening by 6 valves;
carpophore absent.
brown, broadly reniform, 0.7–0.8 mm diam., slightly rugose.
= 26.
Stellaria longifolia
Stellaria longifolia often is confused with forms of S. longipes but differs in having leaves that are widest at or above the middle and in having the angles of the stem and/or the leaf margins minutely papillate-scabrid. The capsules can be either straw colored or black. Plants with black capsules have been named var. atrata.
Hybrids with Stellaria borealis subsp. borealis often occur; see note under that species.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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