Spergularia villosa

Illustrator: Barbara Alongi

Copyright: Flora of North America Association

Plants strongly perennial with branched, woody base, stout, 11–30 cm, stipitate-glandular in inflorescence or throughout. Taproots becoming stout, woody. Stems erect to ascending, often arcuately so, much-branched proximally; main stem 0.4–1.3 mm diam. proximally. Leaves: stipules ± conspicuous, dull white, broadly lance-acuminate, 3–8 mm, apex mucronate; blade filiform to linear, 1–4.2 cm, somewhat fleshy, apex apiculate or spine-tipped; axillary leaves 2–4 per cluster. Cymes simple to 3-compound. Pedicels spreading to reflexed in fruit. Flowers: sepals connate 0.5–0.7 mm proximally, lobes 1- or 3-veined, lance-ovate to lanceolate, 2.5–4 mm, to 5 mm in fruit, margins 0.1–0.6 mm wide, apex acute to acuminate but often briefly rounded at tip; petals white, ± elliptic, 0.7–0.8 times as long as sepal; stamens 7–10; styles 0.4–0.6 mm. Capsules greenish to tan, (4–)5–6.5 mm, 1.1–1.3 times as long as sepals. Seeds reddish brown to dark brown, often with submarginal groove, broadly ovate, plump, 0.4–0.5 mm, smooth, often sculptured with parallel, wavy lines, papillae often present; wing often present, white, 0.1–0.2 mm wide, margins irregular.

Phenology: Flowering spring.
Habitat: Sandy slopes and bluffs, clay ridges and plains, disturbed areas
Elevation: 0-500 m

Distribution

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Calif., Oreg., Mexico (Baja California), South America (Chile?).

Discussion

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.