Cerastium fontanum subsp. vulgare
Description
Annual or perennial herb, 10-30 cm, in loose tufts with numerous leafy stems and no flowering shoots at the base, velutinous to nearly glabrous, often with some glandular hairs particularly in the upper part.
Leaves sessile, grass-green to bluish green, lower ones obovate-spathulate, higher ones ovate to narrowly elliptic, 10-25 by 3-10 mm, obtuse to acute, often narrowed towards the base, soft-hairy on both sides.
Inflorescence most often lax.
Flowers small, not surpassing 9 mm length, diameter 3-8 mm, elongating to 16 mm in fruit;
Sepals narrowly elliptic, 3-7 mm, velvety hairy outside, with glabrous, scarious margin.
Petals obovate, emarginate or bilobed, as long as the sepals or shorter, sometimes absent.
Stamens shorter than the sepals, anthers orbicular.
Ovary ovoid, ovules numerous.
Capsule cylindrical, slightly curved, 9-12 mm, dehiscing by 10 teeth.
Seeds orbicular, 0.4-0.8 mm, reddish brown, finely verrucose.
Distribution
Asia-Temperate: Korea present; Taiwan (Taiwan present), Asia-Tropical: Jawa (Jawa present); Philippines (Philippines present), Cibodas present, Japan present, Mt Kaindi present, Mt Panggerango present, Papua New Guinea present, throughout northern India present
Cosmopolitan in temperate and subtropical regions, rare in the tropics. Widely distributedthroughout northern India, China, Taiwan, Korea and Japan. In Malesia recorded from Java (Mt Panggerango and Cibodas), the Philippines, and Papua New Guinea (Mt Kaindi).
Citation
Gagnepain 1943 – In: Fl. Gén. Indo-Chine.: 240
Jalas 1993 – In: Fl. Eur., ed. 2: 171
Ke Ping 1996: p. 86. – In: Fl. Reip. Pop. Sin.: f. 20: 1-6
Lu Dequan & J.K. Morton 2001 – In: Fl. China: 35
K. Larsen 1989: p. 84. – In: Fl. Camb., Laos & Vietn.: f. 11: 7-12
N.C. Majumdar 1993 – In: Fl. India: 523