Stellaria media
Description
Polymorphous annual or biennial herb.
Leaves glabrous, or ciliate near the base, broadly ovate to ovate-elliptic, acute or acuminate, with a petiole of varying length, longest at the base, up to 12 mm, upper leaves subsessile, 5-30 by 3-20 mm.
Flowers solitary or in lax cymes;
Sepals ovate-oblong, obtuse or acutish, 3-6 mm, often glandular hairy outside, particularly towards the base, 3-nerved.
Petals (4 or) 5, rarely absent, slightly shorter than the calyx, spathulate, glabrous, deeply divided.
Stamens 3-5, rarely more, 1-2.5 mm.
Ovary ovoid to ellipsoid, c. 1 mm;
Capsule longer than calyx, opening by 4-6 valves.
Seeds compressed, reniform, c. 1 mm, reddish brown or brown, tuberculate.
Distribution
Asia-Tropical: Jawa (Jawa present); New Guinea present; Philippines (Philippines present), Cosmopolitan present, Timor present
Widely distributed on the northern hemisphere, now a cosmopolitan weed. In Malesia reported from Java, the Philippines, Timor, and New Guinea; probably introduced also elsewhere.
Morphology
This polymorphic species is treated here collectively. Quite a number of segregate taxa have been described on European material; for an overview of these see .
Citation
Backer 1911: Schoolfl. Java. p 82
Koord. 1912 – In: Exk. Fl. Java. p 11
Backer & Bakh. f. 1963 – In: Fl. Java. p 207
Beguinot 1910 – In: Nuovo Giorn. Bot. Ital. n.s. 299, 348
Merr. 1923 – In: Enum. Philipp. Flow. Pl. p 138
Ying 1996: p. 376. – In: Fl. Taiwan, ed. 2. f. 176, 177
Wu Zhengyi & Ke Ping 1996: p. 104. – In: Fl. Reip. Pop. Sin. f. 24: 6-9
Edgew. & Hook. f. 1874 – In: Fl. Brit. India. p 230
Mizush. 1965 – In: J. Jap. Bot. p 94
Chen Shilong & R.K. Rabeler 2001 – In: Fl. China. p 15
Vill.: Pl. Jungh. p 395
Grierson 1987 – In: Fl. Bhutan. p 207
Wight & Arn. 1835: Prodr. p 42
Chater & Heywood 1964 – In: Fl. Eur., ed. 1. p 134
Benth. 1863 – In: Fl. Austr. p 159
Miq. 1855 – In: Fl. Ned. Ind. p 1055
Ridl. 1925 – In: Fl. Malay Penins. p 88
Vill. 1966: Fl. E. Himal. p 82
Blume 1825: Bijdr. p 63
Chater & Heywood 1993 – In: Fl. Eur., ed. 1. p 162
P. Royen 1982: p. 2355. – In: Alpine Fl. New Guinea. f. 701
Wight 1845: Icon. p 947
Wadhwa 1996 – In: Fl. Ceylon. p 57
Liu & Ying 1976 – In: Fl. Taiwan. p 350
Stone et al. 1977 – In: Malay Nat. J. p 106