Description

Key Characters:

Growth Form: Glabrous perennial herbs.

Stems: Usually somewhat woody toward base, stems weakly ascending, 1–3 dm long, unbranched or few–branched.

Roots:

Leaves: Leaves simple. Alternate. Blades oblong–lanceolate, 10–40 mm long, 3–12 mm wide. Apex acute. Base attenuate. Margins callose–serrate. Veins prominent on upper surface. Subsessile, petioles 2–5 mm long. Stipules conspicuous, linear–subulate, 5–10 mm long, pectinate–ciliate, the cilia up to 6.5 mm long.

Flowers: Flowers in solitary or few in cymes. Flowers bisexual (perfect), axillary. Pedicels slender, deflexed, 10–20 mm long. Calyx of 5 sepals, imbricate, lanceolate, 3.8–6 mm long, subequal, persistent. Corolla of 5 petals, imbricate, white or pink, obovate, 4–6.5 mm long, quickly deciduous, distinct. Stamens 5, with 2 series of staminodes, outer 1–3 whorls of staminodes of numerous purple filaments 1–1.5 mm long, long, apex reniform-capitate, inner series of staminodes 5, each one oblong, ca. 3–4 mm long; anthers oblong, ca. 2–2.5 mm long, dithecal. Ovary superior, flask–shaped, (1)2–15-carpellate, 3-celled at base, 1-celled above, placentation parietal; ovules numerous in 2 rows; style 1.

Fruit: Capsules septicidal; ovoid; 3.5–7 mm long. Seeds globose; reticulate; not winged.

Ploidy: 2n = 38

Habitat: Pastures and along roadsides.

Elevation Range: ca. 425 m.