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Silene latifolia

Common name:	White Campion	Family:	Caryophyllaceae
Author:	Poir.	Botanical references:	17, 200
Synonyms:	Silene alba ((Mill.)E.H.L.Krause.), Lychnis vespertina (Sm.), Lychnis alba (Mill.)
Known Hazards:	Although no mention of toxicity has been seen for this species, it does contain saponins. Although toxic, these substances are very poorly absorbed by the body and so tend to pass through without causing harm. They are also broken down by thorough cooking. Saponins are found in many plants, including several that are often used for food, such as certain beans. It is advisable not to eat large quantities of food that contain saponins. Saponins are much more toxic to some creatures, such as fish, and hunting tribes have traditionally put large quantities of them in streams, lakes etc in order to stupefy or kill the fish[K].
Range:	Most of Europe, including Britain, to N. Africa and W. Asia.
Habitat:	Hedges, waste places and cultivated land[17].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	0	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Behen vulgaris[G] Cucubalus latifolius[G] Cucubalus venosus[G] Lychnis x loveae[B,P] Melandrium album[B,G,P] Oberna commutata[B,P] S. cucubalus[B,G,H,P] S. inflata[B,P] S. latifolia ssp. alba[B,C,CAL,P] S. latifolia subsp. alba[G] S. pratensis[B,G,P] S. venosa[G] S. vulgaris[B,CPHOTO,CAL,CAL,,DUTCH,G,H,HPIC,HORTIPLEX,L,P] S. vulgaris subsp. vulgaris[G]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Avondkoekoeksbloem [D], Blaassilene [D], Bladder Campion [L,P], Bladder-campion [B], Maiden's-tears [B], Maidenstears [P], Wild Campion [E],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	latifolia = broad leaved
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Caryophyllales. Pink family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Us
Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds	From USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia , DEFRA Injurious Weeds
	Listed as noxious/invasive for: Minnesota, Washington, South Australia.

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.6m. It is hardy to zone 6. It is in flower from May to September, and the seeds ripen from July to October. The flowers are dioecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but only one sex is to be found on any one plant so both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required) and are pollinated by Lepidoptera (Moths & Butterflies). The plant not is self-fertile. It is noted for attracting wildlife. We rate it 0/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Hedgerow.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Soap.

The root is used as a soap substitute for washing clothes etc[46, 61]. The soap is obtained by simmering the root in hot water.

Cultivation details

Succeeds in any good sweet loam in a sunny position[1, 200].
Plants tend to be short-lived and are sometimes only annual[200].
Hybridizes readily with S. dioica[17]. The plant attracts moths[17].
The smut, Ustilago violacea, causes the production of stamens in female flowers, but violet spores of the fungus replace the pollen grains[17].
Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.

Propagation

Seed - sow early spring in a cold frame. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer.
Division in spring. Larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found it best to pot up the smaller divisions and grow them on in a lightly shaded position in a cold frame, planting them out once they are well established in the summer.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Lychnis alba (a possible synonym).

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.

References for Silene latifolia ssp. alba (a possible synonym).

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Silene latifolia subsp. alba (a possible synonym).

[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.

References for Silene vulgaris (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[L] Scientific and Common Names (some photos) from Lepidoptera and some other life forms
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
Images from the CalPhoto database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Silene vulgaris subsp. vulgaris (a possible synonym).

[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.

References for silene vulgaris (a possible synonym).

[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures
[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures

References for the family Caryophyllaceae.

[CHINA] Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Silene+latifolia
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