Cerastium fontanum

Baumgarten

Enum. Stirp. Transsilv. 1: 425. 1816.

Common names: Common mouse-ear chickweed céraiste commun
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 5. Mentioned on page 74, 75, 76, 86, 89.

Plants perennial (rarely annual), tufted to mat-forming, often rhizomatous. Stems: flowering-stems erect from decumbent base, branched proximally, 10–45 cm, softly pubescent, eglandular with straight hairs; nonflowering shoots, when present, produced proximally, decumbent, rooting at nodes, branched, 5–20 cm, often subglabrous with alternating lines of eglandular hairs; small axillary tufts of leaves usually absent. Leaves not marcescent; blade 10–25 (–40) × 3–8 (–12) mm, densely covered with patent to ascending, colorless, long, eglandular hairs; leaves of flowering shoots in distant pairs, sessile, blade elliptic to ovate-oblong, apex subacute; leaves of sterile shoots pseudopetiolate, often spatulate, blade oblanceolate, apex obtuse. Inflorescences lax, 3–50-flowered cymes; bracts lanceolate, reduced, herbaceous, eglandular-pubescent, distal often with narrow, scarious margins. Pedicels somewhat curved distally, 2–10 (–20) mm, longer than sepals, densely pubescent with patent, eglandular, rarely glandular-hairs. Flowers: sepals ovatelanceolate, 5–7 mm, margins narrow, apex acute, scarious, pubescent with eglandular, rarely glandular, hairs; petals oblanceolate, 1–1.5 times as long as sepals, apex deeply 2-fid; stamens 10, occasionally 5; styles 5. Capsules narrowly cylindric, curved, 9–17 mm, ca. 2 times sepals; teeth 10, erect, margins convolute. Seeds reddish-brown, 0.4–1.2 mm, bluntly tuberculate; testa not inflated, tightly enclosing seed. 2n = 122–152, usually 144.

Distribution

V5 176-distribution-map.gif

Alta., B.C., Man., N.B., N.S., N.W.T., Ont., P.E.I., Que., Sask., Yukon, Ala., Alaska, Ariz., Ark., Calif., Colo., Conn., D.C., Del., Fla., Ga., Idaho, Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., Ky., La., Maine, Mass., Md., Mich., Minn., Miss., Mo., Mont., N.C., N.Dak., N.H., N.J., N.Mex., N.Y., Nebr., Nev., Ohio, Okla., Oreg., Pa., R.I., S.C., S.Dak., Tenn., Tex., Utah, Va., Vt., W.Va., Wash., Wis., Wyo., Europe, elsewhere

Discussion

Subspecies 4 (2 in the flora).

Cerastium fontanum is a highly variable and complex species. It often has been reported as C. vulgatum Linnaeus, an ambiguous name; see discussion under the genus.

Selected References

None.

Key

1 Inflorescences never glandular; petals 1.3-1.5 times as long as sepals; capsules 11-17 mm; seeds 0.9-1.2 mm Cerastium fontanum subsp. fontanum
1 Inflorescences occasionally viscid-glandular; petals equaling sepals; capsules 9-13 mm; seeds 0.4-0.9 mm Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare
... more about "Cerastium fontanum"
144 +, 122 +  and 152 +
perigynous +  and hypogynous +
2-fid;acute;obtuse;subacute;elliptic;ovate-oblong +
scarious +
John K. Morton +
Baumgarten +
elliptic to broadly ovate +  and linear +
2.5 cm25 mm <br />0.025 m <br /> (4 cm40 mm <br />0.04 m <br />) +
0.8 cm8 mm <br />0.008 m <br /> (1.2 cm12 mm <br />0.012 m <br />) +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (2.5 cm25 mm <br />0.025 m <br />) +
oblanceolate +, subacute +, elliptic +  and ovate-oblong +
not succulent +
0.3 cm3 mm <br />0.003 m <br /> (0.8 cm8 mm <br />0.008 m <br />) +
eglandular-pubescent +
lanceolate +
reduced +
herbaceous +  and scarious +
8 +  and 6 +
cylindric +
0.9 cm9 mm <br />0.009 m <br /> (1.7 cm17 mm <br />0.017 m <br />) +
Common mouse-ear chickweed +  and céraiste commun +
3-50-flowered +
dish--shaped +
expanded +
Alta. +, B.C. +, Man. +, N.B. +, N.S. +, N.W.T. +, Ont. +, P.E.I. +, Que. +, Sask. +, Yukon +, Ala. +, Alaska +, Ariz. +, Ark. +, Calif. +, Colo. +, Conn. +, D.C. +, Del. +, Fla. +, Ga. +, Idaho +, Ill. +, Ind. +, Iowa +, Kans. +, Ky. +, La. +, Maine +, Mass. +, Md. +, Mich. +, Minn. +, Miss. +, Mo. +, Mont. +, N.C. +, N.Dak. +, N.H. +, N.J. +, N.Mex. +, N.Y. +, Nebr. +, Nev. +, Ohio +, Okla. +, Oreg. +, Pa. +, R.I. +, S.C. +, S.Dak. +, Tenn. +, Tex. +, Utah +, Va. +, Vt. +, W.Va. +, Wash. +, Wis. +, Wyo. +, Europe +  and elsewhere +
straight +  and curved +
central +  and peripheral +
pistillate +  and subsessile +
inconspicuous +
unisexual +  and bisexual +
eglandular +  and branched +
10 cm100 mm <br />0.1 m <br /> (45 cm450 mm <br />0.45 m <br />) +
stalked +  and simple +
straight +
patent +  and ascending +
disc--shaped +  and dish +
sessile +  and petiolate +
not marcescent +
connate +
alternating +
translucent +  and purplish +
swollen +
5 cm50 mm <br />0.05 m <br /> (20 cm200 mm <br />0.2 m <br />) +
3 +  and 5 +
crassinucellate +  and bitegmic +
campylotropous +
1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br /> (2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br />) +
reflexed;erect +
0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br /> (1 cm10 mm <br />0.01 m <br />) +
perigynous +  and hypogynous +
fugacious +
1-1.5 times as long as sepals +
oblanceolate +
Enum. Stirp. Transsilv. +
reddish-brown +
tuberculate +
compressed +  and angular-obovate +
0.04 cm0.4 mm <br />4.0e-4 m <br /> (0.12 cm1.2 mm <br />0.0012 m <br />) +
persistent +
distinct +
ovatelanceolate +
0.5 cm5 mm <br />0.005 m <br /> (0.7 cm7 mm <br />0.007 m <br />) +
pseudopetiolate +
5 +  and 10 +
branched +  and simple +
ascending;erect or decumbent +
subterminal +
[30 +  and 5 +
roughened +  and papillate +
distinct +
clavate +  and filiform +
0.05 cm0.5 mm <br />5.0e-4 m <br /> (0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br />) +
rooting +  and rhizomatous +
Cerastium fontanum +
Cerastium +
species +
not inflated +
divided +
10 +  and 8 +
plant +  and mat-forming +
pubescence of simple hairs or stalked glands +  and glabrous +
19 +, 18 +, 17 +, 15] +, 13 +  and [9 +