Plate 14. 
CERASTIUM ARVENSE, VAR STRICTUM. 
Family, Caryophyllace^ : — Leaves opposite, entire. Flowers regular. 
Petals separate. Stamens definite. Ovary superior. Fruit, a 
capsule, 1-celled. Stem often swollen at the nodes. 
Genus, Cerastium {Mouse-ear Chickweed) : — Annual or perennial herbs, 
nearly always hairy. Leaves vary somewhat, but are rarely awl- 
shaped. Flowers white. Sepals and petals 5 (rarely 4), the 
latter sometimes minute or absent, usually 2-lobed at apex. 
Stamens 10 (sometimes 5 or 4). Styles 5 (rarely 4 or 3). Fruit, 
a cylindrical capsule which opens at top into 6 ov 10 short teeth. 
Usually distinguishable from Stellaria by its 5 styles. 
Cerastium arvense, L. var. stnctum, Hook f. (Field 
Mouse-ear, Chickweed.) Plant perennial, about 6-10 in. high. 
Stem much branched at the base, often prostrate with ascending 
flowering branches. Leaves narrow, about |-1 in. lonc^. 
Flowers scented, |-| in. across, on a slender stalk, white. Sepals 
I in. long, with pointed apices and membraneous margins. 
Petals twice as long as the sepals, rather deeply 2-lobed at 
apex. 
Common among grasses, in dry fields. 
Flowers January. 
East and West Falklands. 
Description of plate :— 1, portion of plant ; 2, section of flower ; 
3, stamens and pistil ; 4 and 5, stamens ; 6, pistil ; 7, fruit ; 8, seed.' 
All except 1 enlarged. 
