Stellaria graminea
Encyclopedia
Stellaria graminea is a species of flowering plant in the Caryophyllaceae (like pinks) known by the common names grassleaf starwort and common stitchwort. It is native to Eurasia but it is widespread around other parts of the temperate world as an introduced species
and a common weed
. It grows in many types of habitat, including lawn
s and roadsides. It is a rhizomatous
perennial herb producing branching stems which are prostrate, sprawling, trailing, or erect, and reach up to about 90 centimeters long. The stems are four-angled, weak, and hairless. It is lined with pairs of linear or lance-shaped leaves, each 1 to 4 centimeters long. The leaves are smooth-edged and hairless except for some hairs lining the bases. The inflorescence
bears several flowers, each on a a short pedicel
. The flower has five pointed green sepal
s each a few millimeters long which are usually lined with hairs. There are five white petals, each so deeply lobed it appears to be two.
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
and a common weed
Weed
A weed in a general sense is a plant that is considered by the user of the term to be a nuisance, and normally applied to unwanted plants in human-controlled settings, especially farm fields and gardens, but also lawns, parks, woods, and other areas. More specifically, the term is often used to...
. It grows in many types of habitat, including lawn
Lawn
A lawn is an area of aesthetic and recreational land planted with grasses or other durable plants, which usually are maintained at a low and consistent height. Low ornamental meadows in natural landscaping styles are a contemporary option of a lawn...
s and roadsides. It is a rhizomatous
Rhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...
perennial herb producing branching stems which are prostrate, sprawling, trailing, or erect, and reach up to about 90 centimeters long. The stems are four-angled, weak, and hairless. It is lined with pairs of linear or lance-shaped leaves, each 1 to 4 centimeters long. The leaves are smooth-edged and hairless except for some hairs lining the bases. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
bears several flowers, each on a a short pedicel
Pedicel (botany)
A pedicel is a stem that attaches single flowers to the main stem of the inflorescence. It is the branches or stalks that hold each flower in an inflorescence that contains more than one flower....
. The flower has five pointed green sepal
Sepal
A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Collectively the sepals form the calyx, which is the outermost whorl of parts that form a flower. Usually green, sepals have the typical function of protecting the petals when the flower is in bud...
s each a few millimeters long which are usually lined with hairs. There are five white petals, each so deeply lobed it appears to be two.