64 _ THE PINK FAMILY. 
Capsule 1-celled, or divided at the base into 5 cells, and opening in 5 
or 10 teeth or short valves at the top. 
Far less numerous than Silene, the species of this genus are, however, 
widely spread over the northern hemisphere without the tropics. Some 
botanists break up the genus into several small ones, referring the British 
species to Melandrium, Agrostemma, Lychnis, and Viscaria. 
» + © 
Calyx with long, narrow, green lobes, Pree bie the 
petals 3. L. Githago. 
Calyx-teeth shorter than the petals. 
Calyx after flowering much swollen, ovoid and elopalar. 
Plant glabrous and glaucous. Calyx veined . ; . Silene inflata. 
Plant coarse, green, and hairy. Calyx 10-ribbed. 
Flowers white. Capsule ovoid . . ‘ : . 1. DL. vespertina. 
Flowers red. Capsule nearly lobular ' : F . 2 L. diurna. 
Calyx tubular or short, not swollen. 
Flowers in loose panicles. Petals cut into narrow strips . 4. L. Flos-cuculi. 
Flowers in heads, or dense oblong panicles. 
Stems very viscid. Calyx narrow, tubular. Petals 
notched : , ‘ : ; . 5. LD. Viscaria. 
Stems not viscid. Calyx short. Petals 2-cleft . : . 6. LD. alpina. 
Among the exotic species most frequently cultivated for ornament 
may be mentioned the L, chalcedonica, L. coronaria or Rose Campion, L. 
Celi-Rosa, and L. ocellata, from the Mediterranean region or the Levant, 
and L. fulgens from Mexico. | 
1. L. vespertina, Sibth. (fig. 141). White Z.—A rather coarse, hairy 
biennial, more or less viscid, 1 to 2 feet high, and loosely branched. 
Leaves oval-oblong, usually pointed, tapering at the base, the lower ones 
stalked. Flowers few, in loose panicles, rather large, white, or rarely 
pale pink, opening in the evening (when they are slightly scented), and 
usually dicecious. Calyx 7 to 9 lines long, softly hairy, with 10 ribs and 
5 lanceolate-linear teeth, swelling as the capsule ripens, so as to assume 
an ovoid shape. Petals 2-cleft. Capsule ovoid, opening at the top in 
10 teeth, which remain erect, or curve slightly outwards. 
Under hedges, in fields and waste places, throughout Europe and 
Russian Asia. Abundant in Britain. Fl. all summer. 
2. L. diurna, Sibth. (fig. 142). Red Z.—Very near L. vespertina, and 
perhaps a mere variety, but the plant is less viscid, the leaves and calyxes 
usually shorter, the flowers red, scentless, opening in the morning, and 
the capsule more globular, the 10 teeth very spreading, or rolled back. 
In moist, shady places, woods and hedge-banks, with the same geo- 
graphical range as ZL. vespertina. Equally common in Britain. J. all 
summer, commencing in spring. 
3. L. Githago, Scop. (fig. 143). Corn Cockle.—A tall, erect annual, 
simple or slightly branched, clothed with long,, soft, whitish appressed 
hairs. Leaves long and narrow. Flowers on long leafless peduncles, 
rather large, red, and inodorous, remarkable for the long, green, linear 
lobes of the calyx, projecting much beyond the petals; the latter are 
broad, undivided, and without any scales on the lamina. Capsule opening 
in 5 teeth. Agrostemma Githago, Linn. Githago segetum, Desf. 
Probably of south-eastern origin, but now a common cornfield weed, 
all over Europe and Russian Asia, except the extreme north. Abundant 
in British cornfields. Fl. with the corn. : 
4, L. Flos-cuculi, Linn. (fig. 144). Ragged Robin.—Stock short and 
perennial, but not of long duration, stems erect, not much branched, 1 
