General: Annual herb from a taproot; stems erect or ascending to decumbent, several, freely branched, essentially glabrous, 4-30 cm tall/long.
Leaves: Basal leaves lacking; stem leaves opposite, linear, 1-4.5 cm long, 1-2 mm wide, more or less glabrous, fleshy; stipules squared-off, wider than long, membranous, sheathing at the base.
Flowers: Inflorescence of few to many flowers in a leafy cluster; petals 5, white or pink, 1-3 mm long; sepals 5, greenish, glabrous to moderately glandular-hairy, 2-3.5 mm long.
Fruits: Capsules 3-5 mm long, 3-valved; seeds 0.8-1.1 mm long, light brown, usually wing-margined.
Notes: Two sometimes poorly defined varieties occur in BC.
1. Plants prostrate or decumbent; plants occurring N of Vancouver Island ..................var. canadensis
1. Plants erect or strongly ascending; plants of Vancouver Island and southward..................... var. occidentalis Rossbach
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
Wet to moist coastal mud flats and sandy coastal beaches in the lowland zone; common in coastal BC; var. canadensis ranges N to AK and along the Atlantic Coast, var. occidentalis ranges S to N CA.
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)
