
Silene vulgaris (bladder campion) Caryophyllaceae. Heather Kukor. 5/2017 TN.
Silene vulgaris is a perennial herb 20-80 cm tall, robust, sprawling, smooth, usually waxy-whitish, from a rhizome.
Leaves opposite, fleshy, narrowly egg-shaped 3-8 cm long, 1-3 cm wide, tip abruptly long-pointed, often clasping stem.
Flowers white, petals 0.4-0.6 cm, deeply notched (bilobed), calyx 1cm, inflated, papery, conspicuously veiny; becoming 2 cm in fruit; inflorescence open; blooming April-Aug.
Fruit a dry capsule covered by old calyx, splitting open by 6 valves to release seeds.
Wetland status: UPL.
Frequency in NYC: Infrequent.
Origin: Europe.
Habitat: Disturbed, open areas, fill, meadows.