Calyx 5-toothed, 10–many-nerved, naked at the base. Stamens 10. Styles 3, rarely 4. Pod 1-celled, sometimes 3-celled at least at the base, opening by 3 or 6 teeth at the apex.—Flowers solitary or in cymes. Petals mostly crowned with a scale at the base of the blade. (Name from σίαλον, saliva, from the viscid exudation on the stems and calyx of many species. The English name Catchfly alludes to the same peculiarity.)
[*] Dwarf, alpine, tufted, smooth, perennial; flowering shoots 1-flowered.
1. S. acaùlis, L. (Moss Campion.) Tufted like a moss (1–2´ high); leaves linear, crowded; flowers almost sessile, or rarely on a naked peduncle; petals purple or rarely white, notched or entire, crowned.—Alpine summits of the White Mountains, N. H. July. (Eu.)
[*][*] Calyx bladdery-inflated; perennial; flowers panicled, white, in summer.
2 S. Stellàta, Ait. (Starry Campion.) Leaves in whorls of 4, ovate-lanceolate, taper-pointed; calyx bell-shaped; petals cut into a fringe, crownless.—Wooded banks, R. I. to Minn., and southward.—Stem 3° high, with a large and open pyramidal panicle. Corolla ¾´ broad.
3. S. nívea, Otth. Leaves opposite, lanceolate or oblong, taper-pointed; calyx oblong; petals wedge-form, 2-cleft, minutely crowned.—Penn. to Iowa and Minn.; rare.—Stem 1–2° high, almost smooth. Flowers few, larger than in the last.
S. Cucùbalus, Wibel. (Bladder Campion.) Glaucous; leaves opposite, ovate-lanceolate; calyx globular, much inflated, elegantly veined; petals 2-cleft, nearly crownless. (S. inflata, Smith.)—Fields and roadsides, E. New Eng. to Ill.—A foot high. Flowers loosely cymose. (Nat. from Eu.)
[*][*][*] Calyx elongated or club-shaped, not inflated except by the enlarging pod; flowers cymose or clustered; perennial, pubescent with viscid hairs, especially the calyx; petals crowned, red or rose-color.
4. S. Pennsylvánica, Michx. (Wild Pink.) Stems low (4–8´); root-leaves narrowly spatulate, nearly glabrous, tapering into hairy petioles; stem-leaves (2 or 3 pairs) lanceolate; flowers clustered, short-stalked; calyx club-shaped; petals wedge-form, slightly notched and eroded, pink.—Gravelly places, E. New Eng. to N. Y., Ky., and southward. April–June.
5. S. Virgínica, L. (Fire Pink. Catchfly.) Steins slender (1–2° high); leaves thin, spatulate, or the upper oblong-lanceolate; flowers few and loosely cymose, peduncled; calyx oblong-cylindrical, soon obconical; petals oblong, 2-cleft, deep crimson; the limb 1´ long.—Open woods, western N. Y. to Minn., and southward. June–Aug.
6. S. règia, Sims. (Royal Catchfly.) Stem roughish, erect (3–4° high); leaves thickish, ovate-lanceolate, acute; flowers numerous, short-stalked, in clusters, forming a strict panicle; calyx ovoid-club-shaped in fruit; petals spatulate-lanceolate, mostly undivided, deep scarlet.—Prairies, Ohio to Mo., and southward. July.
7. S. rotundifòlia, Nutt. (Round-leaved Catchfly.) Viscid-hairy; stems weak, branched, decumbent (2° long); leaves thin, round, abruptly pointed, the lower obovate; flowers few, loosely cymose, stalked; calyx elongated; petals 2-cleft and cut-toothed, deep scarlet.—Shaded banks of the Ohio, and in Ky. June–Aug.—Leaves and flowers large.
[*][*][*][*] Calyx not inflated, except by the enlarging pod; annuals.
[+] Glabrous, a portion of each joint of the stem glutinous; flowers pink.
8. S. antirrhìna, L. (Sleepy C.) Stem slender (8–30´ high); leaves lanceolate or linear; flowers small, paniculate; calyx ovoid; petals obcordate, crowned, opening transiently in sunshine.—Dry soil; common in waste places. June–Sept.
S. Armèria, L. (Sweet-William Catchfly.) Glaucous; leaves ovate-lanceolate; flowers in flat cymes, open in sunshine; calyx club-shaped; petals notched, crowned with awl-shaped scales.—Escaped from gardens; rare. (Adv. from Eu.)
[+][+] Viscid-pubescent; flowers white or nearly so, opening at night, sweet-scented.
S. noctúrna, L. (Night C.) Leaves short, the lower spatulate, the upper linear; flowers small, alternate in a 1-sided spike; petals 2-parted.—Introduced sparingly in Pa., according to Schweinitz. (Adv. from Eu.)
S. noctiflòra, L. (Night-flowering C.) Viscid-hairy, tall (1–3° high); lower leaves large and spatulate, the upper lanceolate; flowers few, peduncled; calyx-tube elongated (over 1´ long), soon ovoid, with awl-shaped teeth; petals rather large, 2-parted, crowned.—Cultivated grounds.
5. LÝCHNIS, Tourn. Cockle.
Styles 5, rarely 4, and pod opening by as many or twice as many teeth; otherwise nearly as in Silene. Calyx in one species with leaf-like lobes. (Ancient Greek name for a scarlet or flame-colored species, from λύχνος, a light or lamp.)
L. vespertìna, Sibth. (Evening L.) Biennial, usually diœcious, viscid-pubescent, in foliage, etc., like Silene noctiflora; but 5 styles, calyx much shorter (7–9´´ long), with lance-linear teeth, and flowers white or pinkish, opening at evening.—Cult. or waste grounds; scarce. (Adv. from En.)
L. diúrna, Sibth. (Red Lychnis.) Resembling L. vespertina, but less viscid, the calyx usually shorter (4–6´´ long), and the flowers red, opening in the morning.—Rarely spontaneous. (Adv. from Eu.)
L. Githàgo, Lam. (Corn Cockle.) Annual, clothed with long soft appressed hairs; flowers long-peduncled; calyx-lobes similar to the long and linear leaves, surpassing the broad and crownless purple-red petals, falling off in fruit. (Agrostémma Githago, L.)—In wheat-fields. (Adv. from Eu.)
L. Flos-cùculi, L. (Ragged Robin.) Perennial, erect, slightly downy below, viscid above; leaves narrowly lanceolate; flowers in loose panicles; calyx short, glabrous; petals red, 4-lobed, lobes linear.—Moist or marshy places; New Eng. and N. Y. (Adv. from Eu.)
6. ARENÀRIA, L. Sandwort.
Sepals 5. Petals 5, entire, sometimes barely notched, rarely wanting. Stamens 10. Styles 3, rarely more or fewer, opposite as many sepals. Pod short, splitting into as many or twice as many valves as there are styles, few–many-seeded.—Low, usually tufted herbs, with sessile exstipulate leaves and small white flowers. (Name from arena, sand, in which many of the species grow.)—The following sections are by many botanists taken for genera.
§ 1. ARENARIA proper. Pod splitting wholly or part-way down into 3 or at length into 6 valves; seeds many, naked at the hilum.
A. serpyllifòlia, L. (Thyme-leaved Sandwort.) Diffusely branched, roughish (2–6´ high); leaves ovate, acute, small; cymes leafy; sepals lanceolate, pointed, 3–5-nerved, about equalling the petals and 6-toothed pod.—A low annual; sandy waste places. June–Aug. (Nat. from Eu.)
§ 2. ALSÌNE. Pod splitting to the base into 3 entire valves; seeds many, usually rough, naked at the hilum; flowers solitary and terminal or cymose; root in our species perennial, except in n. 4.
[*] Leaves small, rigid, awl-shaped or bristle-shaped.
1. A. Caroliniàna, Walt. (Pine-barren S.) Densely tufted from a deep perpendicular root; leaves closely imbricated, but spreading, awl-shaped, short, channelled; branches naked and minutely glandular above, several-flowered; sepals obtuse, ovate, shorter than the pod. (A. squarrosa, Michx.)—In pure sand, S. New York, N. J., and southward along the coast. May–July.
2. A. Michaùxii, Hook. f. Erect, or usually diffusely spreading from a small root, smooth; leaves slender, between awl-shaped and bristle-form, with many others clustered in the axils; cyme diffuse, naked, many-flowered; sepals pointed, 3-ribbed, ovate, as long as the pod. (A.