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Silene latifolia latifolia

(Bladder Campion)

Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Common Names in English:

Bladder Campion, Bladder-Campion

Description

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Family Caryophyllaceae

Herbs annual or perennial , rarely subshrubs or shrubs . Stems and branches usually swollen at nodes. Leaves opposite, decussate, rarely alternate or verticillate , simple , entire, usually connate at base ; stipules scarious , bristly , or often absent. Inflorescence of cymes or cymose panicles, rarely flowers solitary or few in racemes , capitula, pseudoverticillasters, or umbels. Flowers actinomorphic , bisexual , rarely unisexual , occasionally cleistogamous . Sepals (4 or) 5, free , imbricate, or connate into a tube , leaflike or scarious, persistent , sometimes bracteate below calyx. Petals (4 or) 5, rarely absent, free, often comprising claw and limb; limb entire or split, usually with coronal scales at juncture of claw and limb. Stamens (2--) 5--10, in 1 or 2 series. Pistil 1; carpels 2--5, united into a compound ovary. Ovary superior, 1-loculed or basally imperfectly 2--5-loculed. Gynophore present or absent. Placentation free, central, rarely basal; ovules (1 or) few or numerous , campylotropous. Styles (1 or) 2--5, sometimes united at base. Fruit usually a capsule, with pericarp crustaceous , scarious, or papery , dehiscing by teeth or valves 1 or 2 × as many as styles, rarely berrylike with irregular dehiscence or an achene. Seeds 1 to numerous, reniform , ovoid , or rarely dorsiventrally compressed , abaxially grooved , blunt , or sharply pointed , rarely fimbriate-pectinate; testa granular , striate or tuberculate , rarely smooth or spongy ; embryo strongly curved and surrounding perisperm or straight but eccentric ; perisperm mealy.

Between 75 and 80 genera and ca. 2000 species: widespread but mainly of temperate or warm-temperate occurrence in the N hemisphere, with principal centers of distribution in the Mediterranean region and W Asia to W China and the Himalayas, fewer species in Africa S of the Sahara, America, and Oceania; 30 genera (two endemic) and 390 species (193 endemic) in China.

Arenaria, Silene, and Stellaria contain over half the species in the family in China. They are mostly concentrated in the Qinghai-Xizang plateau , and are especially rich from the Hengduan Mountains to the Himalayas. The main uses of this family are medicinal and ornamental . Dianthus superbus, Pseudostellaria heterophylla, Stellaria dichotoma var. lanceolata, and Vaccaria hispanica are commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine . Some species of Arenaria, Dianthus, Gypsophila, Psammosilene, and Silene are used as medicinal herbs among the people or are habitually used in local Chinese medicine. Many species of Dianthus, Gypsophila, Lychnis, Saponaria, and Silene are grown as ornamentals. Atocion armeria (Linnaeus) Rafinesque ( Silene armeria Linnaeus), native to Russia and Europe, is also cultivated in China. It differs from Silene in having a corymbose inflorescence and obscure calyx veins. Wu Cheng-yih, Ke Ping, Zhou Li-hua, Tang Chang-lin & Lu De-quan. 1996. Caryophyllaceae. In: Tang Chang-lin, ed., Fl. Reipubl. Popularis Sin. 26: 47–449.[1]

Genus Silene

Herbs, annual , biennial, or perennial , often decumbent at base or sometimes cespitose. Taproots slender or often stout, deep, branched caudex often present, some species stoloniferous or rhizomatous . Stems simple or branched, terete or sometimes angular. Leaves opposite or occasionally whorled , connate proximally, petiolate (basal leaves ) or sessile (most cauline leaves) ; blade 1-5-veined, linear to obovate or spatulate , herbaceous, apex acute to obtuse . Inflorescences terminal or sometimes axillary , simple or branched, sometimes condensed cymes, frequently flowers few or solitary, frequently glandular-pubescent and viscid ; bracts paired , herbaceous or scarious , or absent; involucel bracteoles absent. Pedicels erect , rarely flowers sessile or subsessile . Flowers bisexual , sometimes unisexual (rarely so on separate plants ) ; sepals connate proximally into tube , (4-) 10-28(-40) mm; tube green, whitish, and/or purplish, 10-30-veined, cylindric to campanulate , urceolate , or clavate , terete, frequently inflated , membranous or more rarely herbaceous, commissures between sepals 1-veined, herbaceous; lobes green or purplish, 1-5-veined, broadly triangular to lance-oblong or linear, usually shorter than tube, margins whitish, scarious, apex acute to obtuse; petals 5, white, pink, scarlet, dusky purple, or off-white tinged with purple, clawed, claw usually conspicuous , sometimes small, rarely absent, auricles 2, coronal appendages 2, variously shaped or dissected ; limb usually exserted and conspicuous, oblanceolate to obovate, apex 2-lobed, sometimes dissected into 1-4 linear lobes or irregular teeth, or fimbriate, rarely entire; nectaries at filament bases; stamens 10, rarely fewer or absent, frequently dimorphic with longer opposite petals, arising with petals from carpophore; filaments distinct nearly to base; staminodes absent (rarely to 10 in pistillate flowers, arising with petals from carpophore, filiform ) ; ovary 1- or 3-5-locular; styles 3 or 5, occasionally 4 (absent in staminate flowers ), filiform, 1.5-20 mm, glabrous proximally; stigmas 3 or 5, occasionally 4, linear along adaxial surface of styles, papillate (30×) . Capsules ovoid to globose , opening along sutures into 3-5 valves , frequently splitting into 6-10 equal teeth; carpophore usually present. Seeds ca. (5-) 15-100(-500+), reddish to gray or black, reniform to globose, usually tuberculate or papillate, papillae around margins sometimes larger and inflated, marginal wing sometimes present, appendage absent; embryo peripheral, curved . x = (10) 12.

Species ca. 700: mainly Northern Hemisphere.

Silene includes several important weeds and some very beautiful horticultural plants. In addition to the species described in this account, several others have occurred in the flora area as chance introductions or garden escapes , but they have not become established and most have not been seen recently. They include S. coeli-rosa (Linnaeus) Godron, S. cretica Linnaeus, S. (Lychnis) fulgens (Fischer) E. H. L. Krause, S. italica Persoon, and S. nutans Linnaeus.

In this account, Lychnis, Melandrium, and Viscaria have been included in Silene, their previous recognition as distinct genera having resulted in a great deal of confusion in both nomenclature and taxonomy. I have not presented an infrageneric classification of Silene because existing systems either do not include those other genera (e.g. , P. K . Chowdhuri 1957) or do not deal with most of our native North American taxa [e.g., W. Greuter (1995) and the molecular studies by Oxelman and coworkers (e.g., B . Oxelman et al. 1997, 2000]. The recent molecular study by J. G. Burleigh and T. P. Holtsford (2003) provides little support for existing morphologically based sectional classifications within Silene insofar as they relate to endemic North American taxa. However, it does indicate the distinctness of our arctic alpine species (S. involucrata€”as S. furcata, and S. acaulis) that are circumpolar in their distribution.[2]

Physical Description

Habit: Clumping perennial . Evergreen .

Flowers: Single pink or pale pink flowers in April, May, June, July. Attracts butterflies and hummingbirds. Petals 5, clawed. Limb crimson, 2cm long, 6mm broad, notched at apex, glabrous . Claw -2cm long, mostly scarious but reddish near apex, glabrous. Fornices 2, 3-4mm long, erect , red. Stamens 10, half adnate at base of petals, half not adnate to petals, exserted. Filaments 2.4cm long, glabrous, greenish-white below, reddish near apex. Anthers 3mm long, 2-lobed, greyish-green. Ovary on small gynophore(to 1.5mm long), cylindric , yellow-green, 6mm long, -2mm in diameter. Placentation free-central . Ovules many. Styles 3, white below, red above, -2cm long. Calyx tube to 1.7cm long, 5-lobed, densely glandular pubescent , often with a reddish tinge, 10-nerved, glabrous internally. Lobes acute, triangular, 4mm long.

Foliage: Narrow, strap-like lanceolate leaves. Stems and the bases of flowers are covered with sticky hairs . Leaves of basal rosette spatulate , petiolate , to +/-15cm long (with petiole ), 2cm broad, acute, entire. Blades mostly glabrous . Margins ciliate , especially on petiole. Cauline leaves opposite, becoming sessile, lanceolate to lance-linear , entire, viscid glandular pubescent , acute, reduced upward, typically less than 8 pairs on a stem.

Size/Age/Growth

Size: 12-18" tall.

Landscaping

Landscape Uses: Rock gardens. Wildflower gardens. Shade gardens. • Care: Tolerates coastal conditions.

Habitat

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 2,500 meters (0 to 8,202 feet).[3]

Biology

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Growth

Culture: Space 15-18" apart.

Soil: Moderately fertile , well-drained soil.

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Sun to partial shade. Likes sun.

Moisture: Water Requirements: Drought tolerant .

Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b, 11. (map)

Taxonomy

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Notes

An accepted name in the RHS Horticultural Database.

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Silene

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 192 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus. Here are just 100 of them:

S. acaulis (Cushion-Pink) · S. acaulis var. acaulis (Moss Campion) · S. acaulis var. exscapa (Moss Campion) · S. acaulis var. subacaulescens (Moss Catchfly) · S. acaulis 'Select' (Moss Campion 'select') · S. alexandri (Kamalo Gulch Catchfly) · S. alpestris (Silene) · S. antirrhina (Catchfly) · S. aperta (Naked Catchfly) · S. argaea (Turkish Catchfly) · S. armeria (None-So-Pretty) · S. bernardina (Palmer's Campion) · S. bernardina var. rigidula (Palmer's Catchfly) · S. bernardina var. sierrae (Palmer's Catchfly) · S. bernardina subsp. maguirei (Palmer's Catchfly) · S. bridgesii (Bridges' Catchfly) · S. californica (Indian Pink) · S. campanulata greenei (Red Mountain Catchfly) · S. campanulata subsp. glandulosa (Red Mountain Catchfly) · S. campanulata subsp. greenei (Greene's Catchfly) · S. caroliniana pensylvanica (Carolina Campion) · S. caroliniana wherryi (Wherry's Catchfly) · S. caroliniana subsp. pensylvanica (Pennsylvania Catchfly) · S. caroliniana subsp. wherryi (Wherry's Catchfly) · S. chalcedonica (Jerusalem Campion) · S. chlorantha (Yellowgreen Catchfly) · S. clokeyi (Clokey's Campion) · S. coeli-rosa (Rose Silene) · S. coeli-rosa 'Blue Pearl' (Rose of Heaven) · S. coeli-rosa 'Cherry Blossom' (Cherry Blossom Rose of Heaven) · S. compacta (Oriental Silene) · S. conica (Sand Catchfly) · S. conoidea (Cone Catchfly) · S. cryptopetala (Haleakala Catchfly) · S. csereii (Balkan Catchfly) · S. degeneri (Koolau Gap Catchfly) · S. dichotoma (Dichotoma Silene) · S. dioica (Catchfly) · S. dioica 'Clifford Moor' (Catchfly) · S. dioica 'Valley High' (Catchfly) · S. douglasii (Douglas' Campion) · S. douglasii var. douglasii (Douglas' Campion) · S. douglasii var. oraria (Seabluff Catchfly) · S. douglasii var. rupinae (Seabluff Catchfly) · S. drummondii (Drummond Cockle) · S. drummondii var. drummondii (Drummond's Catchfly) · S. drummondii var. kruckebergii (Kruckeberg's Campion) · S. drummondii var. striata (Drummond's Campion) · S. fuscata (Dark Catchfly) · S. gallica (Common Catchfly) · S. gallica var. anglica (English Catchfly) · S. glandulosa (Red Mountain Catchfly) · S. grayi (Maui Catchfly) · S. hawaiiensis (Hawai'i Catchfly) · S. hookeri (Hooker's Silene) · S. hookeri bolanderi (Bolander's Silene) · S. hookeri subsp. bolanderi (Bolander's Silene) · S. hookeri subsp. pulverulenta (Hooker's Silene) · S. invisa (Red Fir Catchfly) · S. involucrata (Arctic Catchfly) · S. involucrata subsp. elatior (Arctic Catchfly) · S. italica (Italian Catchfly) · S. kingii (King's Campion) · S. laciniata (Cardinal Catchfly) · S. laciniata greggii (Cardinal Catchfly) · S. laciniata laciniata (Cardinal Catchfly) · S. laciniata major (Cardinal Catchfly) · S. laciniata subsp. greggii (Cardinal Catchfly) · S. laciniata 'Jack Flash' (Mexican Catchfly) · S. laciniata subsp. major (Cardinal Catchfly) · S. lanceolata (Kauai Catchfly) · S. latifolia (Bladder Campion) · S. latifolia alba (Bladder Campion) · S. latifolia latifolia (Bladder Campion) · S. latifolia subsp. alba (Evening Lychnis) · S. lemmonii (Lemmon's Catchfly) · S. linicola (Flax Fields Catchfly) · S. macrosperma (Largefruit Catchfly) · S. maritima (Sea Campion) · S. marmorensis (Marble Mountain Catchfly) · S. menziesii menziesii (Menzies' Campion) · S. menziesii var. menziesii (Menzies' Campion) · S. menziesii williamsii (Menzies' Campion) · S. menziesii subsp. dorrii (Menzies' Campion) · S. menziesii subsp. williamsii (Menzies' Campion) · S. mexicana 'Hot Stuff' (Catchfly) · S. multinervia (Manynerve Catchfly) · S. nachlingerae (Nachlinger's Campion) · S. nemoralis (Italian Catchfly) · S. nivea (Evening Campion) · S. noctiflora (Night-Flowering Catchfly) · S. nocturna (Mediterranean Catchfly) · S. nuda insectivora (Barestem Campion) · S. nuda subsp. insectivora (Insecteating Campion) · S. nutans (Eurasian Catchfly) · S. nutans nutans (Eurasian Catchfly) · S. occidentalis (Western Catchfly) · S. occidentalis longistipitata (Western Catchfly) · S. occidentalis subsp. longistipitata (Western Catchfly) · S. oregana (Oregon Campion)

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. Dequan Lu, Zhengyi Wu, Lihua Zhou, Shilong Chen, Michael G. Gilbert, Magnus Lidén, John McNeill, John K. Morton, Bengt Oxelman, Richard K. Rabeler, Mats Thulin, Nicholas J. Turland & Warren L. Wagner "Caryophyllaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 6 Page 1. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  2. John K. Morton "Silene". in Flora of North America Vol. 5. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  3. Mean = 212.770 meters (698.064 feet), Standard Deviation = 196.370 based on 8,209 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
Last Revised: 7/21/2012