Stellaria pallida
Encyclopedia
Stellaria pallida, commonly known as lesser chickweed, is an annual
herbaceous
plant
in the family Caryophyllaceae
. It is native to Europe
and is an introduced species
in North America.
.
It is supposed that Stellaria pallida is the species that was described by Ucria
in 1796 as Alsine petala. In 1828, Du Mortier
, describing a form found in Belgium
, applied the name Alsine pallida, which Piré
(1863) transferred to the genus Stellaria.
The taxonomic status of Stellaria pallida (Dumort.) Piré has remained confused. Dandy (1958) and Clapham, Tutin and Warburg (1962) adopted this name, but while Clapham et al treated S. apetala Ucria as a synonym, Dandy considered this to be a synonym of S. media L., as also did Chater and Heywood. Whitehead and Sinha, having failed to locate any specimens matching the description in the Flora Europaea
, concluded that S. apetala Ucria or S. apetala auct. can be regarded as synonyms of S. pallida (Dumort.) Piré. This conclusion is now reflected in the online version of the Flora Europaea.
.
The flowers are borne in terminal inflorescence
s of between 3 and 6 cymes. Flowers are small, 2–3 mm in diameter, and never open widely. There are four or five green sepals, lanceolate and 2–3.5 mm long. Petals are usually absent, or, if present, are minute. There are usually between one and three stamen
s, sometimes none, with grey-violet anthers, and three styles.
The numerous seeds are pale yellowish-brown, occasionally darker, 0.6–0.8 mm in diameter, with prominent small, blunt tubercle
s.
S. pallida is self-pollinating and, because the flowers do not open widely, is often cleistogamous.
and the Mediterranean islands to Lapland
, and from the British Isles
to Ukraine
. In North America it is found as an introduced species
from Ontario
, Canada, to Mexico
and throughout the United States, from the east coast (Virginia
, North
and South Carolina
, and Florida
) to the west coast (California
and Washington).
in woodland on light glacial sands.
, and S. pallida are superficially similar and are easily confused. A combination of morphological characters is usually required to separate them, the most useful including overall colour (media is darker green), size of leaves and sepals (media is larger), number of stamens (pallida has 1-3, media has 3-10), colour of anthers (grey-violet in pallida, red-violet in media), and colour and size of seeds (yellowish-brown, ≤ 0.8 mm in pallida; dark-reddish-brown and ≥ 0.9 mm in media).
Annual plant
An annual plant is a plant that usually germinates, flowers, and dies in a year or season. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed...
herbaceous
Herbaceous
A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaves and stems that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. They have no persistent woody stem above ground...
plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
in the family Caryophyllaceae
Caryophyllaceae
The Caryophyllaceae, commonly called the pink family or carnation family, is a family of flowering plants. It is included in the dicotyledon order Caryophyllales in the APG III system, alongside 33 other families, including Amaranthaceae, Cactaceae and Polygonaceae...
. It is native to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and is an introduced species
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
in North America.
Taxonomy
Stellaria pallida forms part of a complex that also includes S. media and S. neglectaStellaria neglecta
Stellaria neglecta, greater chickweed, is an annual or short-lived perennial herbaceous plant in the family Caryophyllaceae. It is native to Europe and has been introduced to North America.-Taxonomy:...
.
It is supposed that Stellaria pallida is the species that was described by Ucria
Bernardino da Ucria
Placido Michele Aurifici, better known as Bernardino da Ucria was a Sicilian friar and botanist.-Life:...
in 1796 as Alsine petala. In 1828, Du Mortier
Barthélemy Charles Joseph Dumortier
Barthélemy Charles Joseph, Baron Dumortier was a Belgian politician and botanist. Some consider him to be the true discoverer of cell division, although he is rarely credited as such.-Works:...
, describing a form found in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, applied the name Alsine pallida, which Piré
Louis Alexandre Henri Joseph Piré
Louis Alexandre Henri Joseph Piré was a Belgian botanist. He held the position of Professor of Botany at the Université Libre de Bruxelles.-Works:...
(1863) transferred to the genus Stellaria.
The taxonomic status of Stellaria pallida (Dumort.) Piré has remained confused. Dandy (1958) and Clapham, Tutin and Warburg (1962) adopted this name, but while Clapham et al treated S. apetala Ucria as a synonym, Dandy considered this to be a synonym of S. media L., as also did Chater and Heywood. Whitehead and Sinha, having failed to locate any specimens matching the description in the Flora Europaea
Flora Europaea
The Flora Europaea is a 5-volume encyclopedia of plants, published between 1964 and 1993 by Cambridge University Press. The aim was to describe all the national Floras of Europe in a single, authoritative publication that helped readers identify any wild or widely cultivated plant in Europe to the...
, concluded that S. apetala Ucria or S. apetala auct. can be regarded as synonyms of S. pallida (Dumort.) Piré. This conclusion is now reflected in the online version of the Flora Europaea.
Description
S. pallida is a much-branched herb, generally yellowish-green in colour. The stems are prostrate, usually 10–20 cm long, though some can reach 40 cm, and glabrous, with a single row of hairs between each pair of nodes. Leaves are pale-green and ovate, up to 1.5 cm long and usually less than 0.7 cm broad; proximal leaves have a short stalk, distal leaves are sessileSessility (botany)
In botany, sessility is a characteristic of plants whose flowers or leaves are borne directly from the stem or peduncle, and thus lack a petiole or pedicel...
.
The flowers are borne in terminal inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
s of between 3 and 6 cymes. Flowers are small, 2–3 mm in diameter, and never open widely. There are four or five green sepals, lanceolate and 2–3.5 mm long. Petals are usually absent, or, if present, are minute. There are usually between one and three stamen
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
s, sometimes none, with grey-violet anthers, and three styles.
The numerous seeds are pale yellowish-brown, occasionally darker, 0.6–0.8 mm in diameter, with prominent small, blunt tubercle
Tubercle
A tubercle is generally a wart-like projection, but it has slightly different meaning depending on which family of plants or animals it is used to refer to....
s.
S. pallida is self-pollinating and, because the flowers do not open widely, is often cleistogamous.
Distribution
Stellaria pallida has a widespread, though local, distribution across Europe, from southern SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and the Mediterranean islands to Lapland
Lapland (region)
Lapland is a region in northern Fennoscandia, largely within the Arctic Circle. It streches across Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Kola Peninsula . On the North it is bounded by the Barents Sea, on the West by the Norwegian Sea and on the East by the White Sea...
, and from the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
to Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. In North America it is found as an introduced species
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
from Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada, to Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and throughout the United States, from the east coast (Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, North
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
and South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, and Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
) to the west coast (California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and Washington).
Habitat
S. pallida is usually found on coastal sand dunes, in sandy waste places, or on cultivated sandy soils. In Europe it is often found growing under the shade of Scots PineScots Pine
Pinus sylvestris, commonly known as the Scots Pine, is a species of pine native to Europe and Asia, ranging from Scotland, Ireland and Portugal in the west, east to eastern Siberia, south to the Caucasus Mountains, and as far north as well inside the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia...
in woodland on light glacial sands.
Similar species
The apetalous form of Stellaria media, var. apetala GaudinGaudin
Gaudin is a French surname and may refer to:*André Gaudin, French rower*Antoine Marc Gaudin , American engineer*Chad Gaudin , American baseball player*Christian Gaudin , French politician...
, and S. pallida are superficially similar and are easily confused. A combination of morphological characters is usually required to separate them, the most useful including overall colour (media is darker green), size of leaves and sepals (media is larger), number of stamens (pallida has 1-3, media has 3-10), colour of anthers (grey-violet in pallida, red-violet in media), and colour and size of seeds (yellowish-brown, ≤ 0.8 mm in pallida; dark-reddish-brown and ≥ 0.9 mm in media).