''Saxifraga stolonifera'' is a perennial flowering plant known by several common names, including creeping saxifrage, strawberry saxifrage, creeping rockfoil, Aaron's beard,

mother of thousands ''Kalanchoe daigremontiana'', formerly known as ''Bryophyllum daigremontianum'' and commonly called mother of thousands, or Mexican hat plant, is a succulent plant native to Madagascar. Like other members of '' Bryophyllum'' (now included in t ...

, roving sailor, and strawberry begonia or strawberry geraniumUmberto Quattrocchi. ''CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names: Common Names, Scientific Names, Eponyms. Synonyms, and Etymology.'' CRC Press, 1999. p.2395-2396. (it is neither a

begonia ''Begonia'' is a genus of perennial flowering plants in the family Begoniaceae. The genus contains more than 2,000 different plant species. The Begonias are native to moist subtropical and tropical climates. Some species are commonly grown ind ...

nor a geranium).

Range

The plant is native to China, Japan and Korea. But it is widespread in much of the

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...

regions of

Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago ...

and in North America. In their homeland they thrive in forests, in bushes, in meadows, even on rocks, at altitudes of 400 to 4500 meters. It is now used as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...

worldwide.

Description

The plant spreads via threadlike red stolon (runners), with plantlets taking root in the vicinity of the mother plant. It is hardy to

USDA zone A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...

5. It grows as a

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wid ...

herbaceous plant Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent wood, woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennial plant, perennials, and nearly all Annual plant, annuals and Biennial plant, biennials. Definition ...

10 to 20 cm tall, whose

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

bears small zygomorphous flowers that bloom during the transition between spring and summer. Like strawberry plants, it produces stolons with clones at the tip, allowing it to spread easily. It develops long thin extensions with scale-shaped leaves. Its petiole is 15-21 cm long. The basal leaves are green above with silver gray nerves and reddish below. The leaf is round in outline and irregularly serrated at the edge, trimmed at the base, rounded or heart-shaped. The stem leaves are

lanceolate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular ...

and only 6 mm long and 2 mm wide. The flowering period is May to August. The loose, paniculate inflorescence contains 7 to 60 flowers. The

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coine ...

s are protruding or struck back. Two of the five white petals are characteristically longer than the rest. The longer petals are lanceolate, 6-15 mm long and 2-4 mm wide and pointed. The smaller petals are red or yellow dotted and 2-4 mm long and 1-2 mm wide. The stamens are 4.5 mm long. The ovary is pale yellow.

Uses

The foliage is occasionally used fresh or cooked in

Japanese cuisine Japanese cuisine encompasses the regional and traditional foods of Japan, which have developed through centuries of political, economic, and social changes. The traditional cuisine of Japan (Japanese: ) is based on rice with miso soup and oth ...

. It was also used as an herbal remedy in

classical Japan The first human inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago have been traced to prehistoric times around 30,000 BC. The Jōmon period, named after its cord-marked pottery, was followed by the Yayoi period in the first millennium BC when new inventi ...

. It contains

quercetin Quercetin is a plant flavonol from the flavonoid group of polyphenols. It is found in many fruits, vegetables, leaves, seeds, and grains; capers, red onions, and kale are common foods containing appreciable amounts of it. It has a bitter flavor ...

which has been shown to have anti-cancer activity

in vitro ''In vitro'' (meaning in glass, or ''in the glass'') studies are performed with microorganisms, cells, or biological molecules outside their normal biological context. Colloquially called " test-tube experiments", these studies in biology ...

Cultivation

A popular garden flower, ''Saxifraga stolonifera'' has attractive white blossoms with distinctive pointed petals and bright yellow ovary. It requires a sheltered spot in full or partial shade. Its creeping green foliage makes a good groundcover. In favorable conditions it is semi-

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, whic ...

. It has gained the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nor ...

’s Award of Garden Merit.

Gallery

File:Saxifraga_stolonifera_a1.jpg, Leaves Image:Saxifraga stolonifera Harvest Moon 1.jpg, Garden plant File:Saxifraga_stolonifera_s4.jpg, Stolons File:Saxifraga_stolonifera_(stem).jpg, Stem detail File:Saxifraga stolonifera Harvest Moon 2.jpg

References

External links

Plants for a FutureJepson Manual Treatment
{{Taxonbar, from=Q159002 Flora of Japan

stolonifera Stolonifera is a suborder of soft corals in the order Alcyonacea. Members of this taxon are characterised by having separate polyps budding off an encrusting horizontal, branching stolon. The skeletons include spicules or consists of a horny exte ...