General: Annual or short-lived perennial herb from a slender taproot; stems prostrate, several, branched, glandular-hairy, 5-30 cm long.
Leaves: Basal leaves lacking; stem leaves opposite, narrowly linear, tapering to an awned tip, 5-20 mm long, less than 1 mm wide, usually in bunches, 1-nerved; stipules silvery, lanceolate, long-pointed, 3.5-5 mm long.
Flowers: Inflorescence of a few flowers in a leafy cluster; petals 5, pink to pale red, egg-shaped, 2-3.5 mm long; sepals 5, greenish, narrowly egg-shaped, 3.5-5 mm long, glandular-hairy, with a wide, papery margin.
Fruits: Capsules 3-5 mm long, 3-valved; seeds light or dark brown or greyish-brown, finely reticulate and pimply, wingless, 0.4-0.6 mm long.
1. Stamens 2-5; sepals glabrous to moderately glandular-hairy.
2. Leaves blunt; seeds usually wing-margined, 0.8-1.1 mm long...........S. canadensis
2. Leaves abruptly slender-pointed; seeds wingless, 0.6-0.9 mm long............... S. salina
1. Stamens 6-10; sepals densely glandular-hairy.
3. Seeds dark reddish-brown, nearly smooth, usually surrounded with a thin, white or brownish wing; sepals 5-9 mm long; plants native perennials............. S. macrotheca
3. Seeds light or dark brown or greyish-brown, finely reticulate and pimply, wingless; sepals 3.5-5 mm long, or less; plants introduced annuals or short-lived perennials.................... S. rubra
Source: Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
Habitat / Range
Dry to mesic disturbed areas and waste places in the lowland, steppe and lower montane zones; common in S BC, rare northwards; introduced from Europe.
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range. (Updated August, 2013)
