6. Silene dioica (L.) Clairv. (red campion)
Lychnis
dioica L.
Map 1485, Pl.
348 c
Plants
perennial, dioecious, usually with short rhizomes. Stems 15–80 cm long,
ascending, often from a spreading base, branched, moderately to densely
pubescent with long, spreading hairs, sometimes also with sparse, stalked
glands toward the tip. Basal leaves often present at flowering, shorter than
the largest stem leaves with a poorly developed, short or long petiole. Stem
leaves opposite, mostly 5–10 pairs, short-petiolate (lower leaves) or sessile.
Leaf blades 3–9 cm long, ovate to broadly ovate or elliptic, tapered at the
base, angled or short-tapered to a sharply pointed tip, the surfaces moderately
to densely short-hairy, especially along the midvein. Flowers imperfect (either
all staminate or all pistillate), in open to slender terminal panicles or
clusters, often forked basally, the stalks 0.2–2.0 cm long, with long,
spreading, nonglandular hairs, rarely also with sparse, stalked glands, the
bracts paired and resembling small leaves, with green margins. Sepals 9–17 mm
long, the tube with 10 parallel nonanastomosing nerves, more or less
bell-shaped, not inflated, the nerves green or often purplish-tinged, pale
between the nerves, long-hairy, the lobes triangular to lanceolate, green or
purplish-tinged, sharply pointed at the tip, the margins herbaceous and green
or thin and white. Petals 5, 18–25 mm long, the expanded portion 7–10 mm long,
entire to 2-lobed at the tip, deep pink to pink, with a pair of small
appendages on the upper surface at the base of the expanded portion. Styles 5.
Fruits 10–12 mm long, dehiscing apically by 10 teeth, lacking a stalklike base.
Seeds 1.0–1.6 mm wide, kidney-shaped and plump, the surface with small
papillae, dark brown to black. 2n=24. May–September.
Introduced,
uncommon, known thus far from St. Louis County (native of Europe; introduced in
the northern U.S. south to Pennsylvania, Missouri, and Oregon; Canada). Habitat
unknown but presumably open, disturbed areas.
This species is
accepted as part of the Missouri flora with some reservations. Palmer and
Steyermark (1935) and Steyermark (1963) cited Jackson County as the source for
their inclusion of S. dioica (as Lychnis dioica) in the Missouri
flora. However, no specimens from that county could be located during the
present research, and it seems likely that the original determination was in
error. Subsequently, however, a specimen was collected by Bill Bauer that
possibly originated from St. Louis County (the label has no further locality
data, but Bauer was living in Webster Groves at the time). The species is
included here based on that record. Silene dioica is completely
interfertile with the white-flowered S. latifolia, and Morton (2005c)
stated that hybrids are formed readily where the two species grow in proximity.
He also noted that such hybrids are very difficult to distinguish from S.
dioica from herbarium specimens on which pale pink corollas or a mix of
pink and white flowers cannot be observed with confidence. Nevertheless, Morton
annotated a specimen from St. Louis County as representing this hybrid, which
suggests that both parents were growing somewhere in the vicinity (further
support for the dot in St. Louis County in Map 1485).