76 
SILENE 
Section II. EU-SI LENE 
Eu-Silene Godron in Mlm. Soc. Nancy for 1846, 164(1847); Grenier et Godron FI. France i, 205 (1848); 
Rohrbach Monogr. 67 et 89 (1868). 
For characters, see page 74. 
British species of Eu-Silene 
3. S. acaulis (see below). Perennial, tufted. Flowers solitary, erect. Calyx campanulate. 
Petals with the coronal-scale emarginate. Capsule with imperfect partitions. 
4. fS. armeria (p. 77). Annual. Inflorescence many-flowered. Flowers rather crowded, 
shortly pedicelled. 
5. S. anglica (p. 78). Annual. Claw of petals not auricled. Calyx cylindrical. Pedicels 
ultimately rather long. Flowers erect. Filaments hairy below. Capsule subsessile. 
6. *S. dichotoma (p. 78). Annual. Flowers erect at anthesis. Calyx elongate. Gynophore 
short. Coronal scales laciniate. 
7. S. nutans (p. 79). Annual. Flowers nodding. Calyx elongate, broadest above. Petals 
deeply bifid. Filaments glabrous, exserted. Calyx with lanceolate teeth, claviform, truncate at the 
base. Gynophore distinct, with short hairs, directed downwards. 
8. # S. italica (p. 80). Perennial. Flowers erect. Calyx elongate, contracted at the summit ; 
segments obtuse. Petals bifid. Inflorescence lax, few-flowered. Gynophore long. 
9. S. otites (p. 81). Annual. Flowers erect at anthesis. Calyx short, not contracted at the 
summit. Flowers small, in compound racemes or verticels. Petals entire, yellow, without scales. 
Gynophore short. 
3. SILENE ACAULIS. Moss Campion. Plate 73 
Caryophyllus pumilio alpinus Johnson in Gerard Herball, ed. 2, 593 (1636); Ocimoides muscosus alpinus 
Parkinson Theatr. Bot. 639 (1640); C. montanus minimus sive c. pumilio alpinus Johnson Merc. Bot. ii, 18 
(1641); Lychnis alpina pumila folio gramineo C. Bauhin Pinax 206(1671); Dillenius Hort. Eltham. 206, fig. 206 
(1732); L. alpina minima Ray Hist, ii, 1004 (1688); Syn. ed. 3, 341 (1724). 
Silene acaulis L. Sp. PI. ed. 2, 603 (1762)!; Smith FI. Brit. 472 (1800)!; Syme Eng. Bot. ii, 62 
(1864); Rouy et Foucaud Ft. France iii, 128 (1896); Cucubalus acaulis L. Sp. PI. 415 (1753). 
leones: — Smith Eng. Bot. t. 1081; Ft. Dan. t. 21; Reichenbach Icon, vi, t. 270, fig. 5084. 
Camb. Brit. FI. iii. Plate 7J. ( a — -f) Fertile shoots. ( g ) Leaf (enlarged), lower surface. ( h ) Leaf (enlarged), 
upper surface. (2) Petal (enlarged). (/) Petal (side view) and stamen (enlarged). ( k ) Ovary (enlarged). (/) Capsule 
(enlarged). Forfarshire (E. S. M.). 
Exsiccata : — Bourgeau (Pyr. Esp.), 224; Dickson, i, 8; Duchartre, 45; Fellman, 35; Fries, xi, 40; xv, 
39 ; Lange, 378 ; Reichenbach, 394. 
Perennial, more or less strongly caespitose. Roots deep. Stem stout and much branched from 
the base, giving rise to numerous barren shoots and short fertile branches. Branches 2 — 10 cm. 
long. Leaves sessile, linear, ciliolate, acute or acuminate, shining, up to i'5 cm. long. Inflorescence 
solitary. Bracts leaf-like. Pedicels up to 2‘o — 2^5 cm. long in fruit. Flowers often hemi-dioecious, 
solitary, erect; June to August. Calyx gamosepalous, campanulate, somewhat umbilicate at the base, 
faintly veined, veins not anastomosing, purplish, segments obtuse. Petals rose or rarely white, 
coronal scale emarginate, limb obovoid, entire or notched. Gynophore pubescent, shorter than the 
capsule. Stamens longer than the claw. Ovary elliptical. Stigmas 3, as long as the ovary. Capsule 
elliptical, much longer than the calyx, pubescent, 6-toothed, with narrow imperfect partitions. Seeds 
yellow, punctulate. 
This is one of the most abundant as well as one of the most beautiful of our Arctic-Alpine species. It descends to 
quite low levels in some of the warmer and more humid parts of its British area of distribution. 
