Silene indica Roxb. ex Otth

Species

Angiosperms > Caryophyllales > Caryophyllaceae > Silene

Characteristics

Herbs perennial, 25--50 cm tall. Roots robust, root crown lignified, producing stoloniform stems. Stems caespitose, erect or ascending, gray-green, simple or branched, hairy, apically glandular hairy. Basal leaves withered early; cauline leaves 4--8 pairs, ovate or ovate-lanceolate, 2--4(--4.5) × 1--2 cm, hirtellous, glandular hairy, margin ciliate, base cuneate, half clasping, apex acute. Flowers 7--20(--30). Pedicel elongated. Flowers slightly nutant, erect in late anthesis. Calyx campanulate, slightly inflated, 1.1--1.8 cm × 6--12 mm, umbilicate at base, open at apex, glandular hairy; longitudinal veins dark violet or green, densely hirtellous-glandular hairy; calyx teeth broadly triangular, 3--4 mm, margin membranous, glandular ciliate, apex obtuse. Androgynophore 2--3 mm, weakly hairy. Petals exserted 3--4 mm beyond calyx, green or violet-brown; claws cuneate, 9--11 mm, narrowly auriculate, glabrous or sparsely villous in early anthesis; limbs nearly orbicular, ca. 4 mm, bifid or deeply so, lobes entire or with obtuse laciniae; coronal scales round, scarious, with small round teeth at apex, 0.5--1 mm. Stamens exserted; filaments villous at base. Styles 4 or 5. Capsule ovoid, 1.1--1.2 cm × 7--8 mm, 8--10-toothed. Seeds triangular-reniform, ca. 1 mm, with auriculate pit on two sides, abaxially with prominent tubercles. Fl. Jul, fr. Aug.
More
A herb. It grows 55 cm high. The stems are simple and erect. The leaves are 2-7 cm long by 1-3 cm wide. They vary in size and shape.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention -
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.55
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

It grows in cultivated fields during winter with the wheat crop in India. In Pakistan it grows up to 2,800 m altitude. In Tibet it grows between 2,300-3,900 m above sea level.
Light -
Soil humidity -
Soil texture -
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 7-11

Usage

The young plants are cooked as a vegetable.
Uses medicinal
Edible leaves
Therapeutic use Soap (unspecified)
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Mode -
Germination duration (days) 15 - 20
Germination temperacture (C°) 21
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Silene indica unspecified picture

Distribution

Silene indica world distribution map, present in Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:157554-1
WFO ID wfo-0001238427
COL ID 6YP7M
BDTFX ID 40407
INPN ID 106934
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Silene indica Lychnis indica Lychnis nutans Melandrium indicum Lychnis ciliata Silene indica Silene indica var. indica

Lower taxons

Silene indica var. bhutanica Silene indica var. edgeworthii Silene indica var. cashmeriana