''Stellaria neglecta'', the greater chickweed, is an

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or short-lived

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in the family

Caryophyllaceae Caryophyllaceae, commonly called the pink family or carnation family, is a family of flowering plants. It is included in the dicotyledon order Caryophyllales in the APG III system, alongside 33 other families, including Amaranthaceae, Cactacea ...

. It is native to

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Taxonomy

''Stellaria neglecta'' forms part of a complex that also includes '' S. media'' and '' S. pallida''. The last of these is generally separable on morphological grounds, but there is no clear-cut morphological distinction between ''S. neglecta'' and ''S. media'', which are easily confused; ''neglecta'' was formerly treated as a subspecies of ''S. media''.

Description

''Stellaria neglecta'' resembles ''S. media'', but is generally larger in all its parts. It has weak branching stems, that are usually decumbent at the base, ascending distally to around 80–90 cm. Between each pair of nodes, the stem carries a single row of hairs. The lower leaves are long-stalked, with the leaf blade 1−2.5 cm long and the stalk up to twice as long; the upper leaves have a short flattened stalk or are

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, with the leaf blade up to 5 cm long; the leaf blade is ovate to broadly elliptical, acuminate, and glabrous. Flowers are borne on long slender stalks which are glabrous or pubescent, initially spreading and reflexed, later erect. There are five sepals, 5−6.5 mm long, lanceolate, glabrous or pubescent, with an acute apex. The five petals are white, deeply bifid, the cleft extending almost to the base and giving the impression that there are actually ten petals; in length the petals are equal to or slightly longer than the sepals. The flowers are about 10 mm in diameter. There are usually 8-10 stamens and three styles. ''Stellaria neglecta'' flowers between April and July, after which the flowering parts decay. The stems remain alive and produce

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s which overwinter and flower the following year. Seeds are tuberculate, dark reddish-brown, 1.3−1.7 mm in diameter. The tubercles are conical, with an acute apex.

Distribution

Greater chickweed is widely distributed throughout Europe, from the

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to the

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and

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, and from the

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, but is nowhere common. In Great Britain, it is most common in the south and west, infrequent in the north. In North America, it was formerly rare, but it has spread rapidly in recent decades and is now considered a weed in a number of states, from

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Habitat

''Stellaria neglecta'' prefers damp, shady conditions, and is usually found in woodland, hedges or on the banks of streams.

Similar species

Separation of ''S. neglecta'' from ''S. media'' on morphological grounds alone is difficult. In Britain, Whitehead and Sinha found that specimens with ten perfect stamens, petals more or less equalling the sepals, and growing on the margins of streams, lakes or other damp places, were assignable to ''S. neglecta''. While ''S. neglecta'' usually has ten stamens, ''S. media'' may have as few as 3−7. Other differences are that ''S. neglecta'' is invariably found as a

ruderal A ruderal species is a plant species that is first to colonize disturbed lands. The disturbance may be natural for example, wildfires or avalanchesor the consequences of human activities, such as construction ( of roads, of buildings, mining, et ...

in damp conditions, while ''S. media'' also occurs as a weed, in a variety of habitats, including cultivated ground; and ''S. neglecta'' flowers only between April and July, while ''S. media'' flowers throughout the year.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q163148 neglecta