64 THE PINK FAMILY. [Lychnis, 
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 Visearia. 
Calyx with long, narrow, green lobes, projecting beyond the ; 
petals. Ath el - - «+ 8 DL. Githago. 
Calyx-teeth shorter than the petals. ; 
Calyx after flowering much swollen, ovoid and globular. 
Plant glabrous and glaucous. Calyx veined ’ > . Silene inflata, 
Plant coarse, green, and hairy. Calyx 10-ribbed. 
Flowers white. Capsule ovoid . i “ . ° . 1. Z, vespertina. 
Flowers red. Capsule nearly globular. ; ‘ . 2 LDL. diurna, 
Calyx tubular or short, not swollen. 
Flowers in loose panicles. Petals cut into narrow strips . 4. DZ. Flos-cuculi, 
Flowers in heads, or dense oblong panicles. 
Stems very viscid. Calyx narrow, tubular. Petals 
notched ; ; : ; : 5 - : : . 5. DL. Visearia, 
Stems not viscid. Calyx short. Petals 2-cleft. ' . 6. LD. alpina. 
Among the exotic species most frequently cultivated for ornament, may 
be mentioned the LZ. chalcedonica, L. coronaria or Rose Campion, L. Cali- 
Rosa, and L. ocellata, from the Mediterranean region or the Levant, and 
LD. fulgens from Mexico. 
1. &. vespertina, Sibth. (fig. 140). White Lychnis.—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 and6 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. FJ. all summer. 
2, &. diurna, Sibth. (fig. 141). Red Lychnis.—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 hedgebanks, with the same geogra- 
phical range as L. vespertina. Equally common in Britain. Fl. all summer, 
commencing in spring. 
3. &. Githago, Lam. (fig. 142). Corn Lychnis (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 6 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.143). Meadow Lychnis (Ragged Robin): 
—Stock short and perennial, but not of long duration, stems erect, not 
much branched, 1 to 2 feet high, slightly downy below and viscid above. 
Leaves few, narrow-lanceolate, the lower ones stalked, Flowers in loose 
