SILENE SCLEROCARPA
Common Names:- None
Synonyms:- Silene cerastoides var. emporitana, Silene clusii, Silene
micropetala.
Meaning:- Silene (Gr) A name used by the Greek philosopher Theophrastus for
catchfly.
Sclerocarpa (L) Hard fruited.
General description:- Annual (or sometimes short-lived perennial?), usually
branched from the base
Stems:-
Leaves:-
Flowers:-
and rigid, forward-directed hairs.
Fruit:-
shorter than or equalling the calyx.
2) Seeds, c. 0.8 mm, dark brown, almost smooth, with concave sides and broad,
slightly grooved back.
Key features:-
1) Seed 0.5-0.6 mm, shoulders laterally bulging, not winged.
3) Lower pedicels rarely to 10 mm.
4) Calyx contracted above.
5) Anthophore 1.5-2 mm.
6) Capsule globose at the base, narrowed into a neck.
Habitat:- Sandy and gravelly seashores, dry open shrubby vegetation and steppe.
0-150 m.
Distribution:- In Greece not recorded outside the Aegean area. - A S
Mediterranean species, widespread in N Africa and appearing in Europe only in the
far SW (S Spain, S Portugal) and SE. Rare on Crete known from the SE and far E,
coastal areas and one location in the far SW.
Flowering time:- Late March to May.
Photos by:- Currently none available