familyCaryophyllaceae
subfamilyCaryophyllaceae subfam. Alsinoideae
genusMoenchia
speciesMoenchia erecta
subspeciesMoenchia erecta subsp. erecta
Moenchia erecta subsp. erecta
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 5. Treatment on page 93.
Stems 2.5–19 cm, glabrous, glaucous. Leaf blades 5–18 mm. Pedicels 1–7.6 cm. Petals ca. 1/2–2/3 times as long as sepals. Capsules 5–6.5 mm, usually 4/5–1 times as long as sepals. 2n = 38 (Europe).
Phenology: Flowering spring.
Habitat: Lawns, disturbed areas
Elevation: 0-600 m
Distribution
Introduced; B.C., Calif., Ill., Oreg., S.C., Wash., Europe.
Discussion
Moenchia erecta is known in widely scattered areas of western North America; its occurrence in the east is limited. Historical records from the 1830s exist as specimens collected at Baltimore, Maryland, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; the species has not been recollected in either place since. The Illinois population, first documented in 1993, is scattered over an acre of a mowed field in a city park.
Selected References
None.
Lower Taxa
None.