PROCUMBENT PEARLWORT

Sagina procumbens

Carnation & Campion (Pink) Family [Caryophyllaceae]

month8apr month8april month8may month8jun month8june month8jul month8july month8aug month8sep month8sept

status
statusZnative
 		 flower
flower8white
 		 flower
flower8green
 		 inner
inner8cream
 		 morph
morph8actino
 		 petals
petalsZ0
none		 petals
petalsZ4
or tiny		 stem
stem8round
 		 sex
sexZbisexual
 

22nd April 2007, place unknown Photo: © Bastiaan Brak
By far the most common Pearlwort. It forms low sprawling mats over the ground, the stems of which are procumbent along the ground and root at the nodes.


22nd April 2007, place unknown Photo: © Bastiaan Brak
The leaves are in a radial non-flowering rosette. The flowering stems have 1 to 3 whorls of maybe up to 5 leaves.


11th June 2016, Cronton ex-Colliery, Prescott, Sefton. Photo: © RWD
The Cronton specimens are taken in the middle of June - so are at a later stage of development than the specimens taken in April above. The leaves are hairless and have a tiny short point (less than 0.2mm long!) at their tips (best seen on the leaf upper left). The two capsules (near the top) have not yet opened here. [A paler-green semi-translucent moss with short pointed leaves is trying to intervene in several places, and a silvery-striped grass-like plant]


11th June 2016, Cronton ex-Colliery, Prescott, Sefton. Photo: © RWD
The upper fruit has spread its 4 sepals (sometimes there are 5) to reveal the capsule which is semi-translucent. The lower flower is still all green, has its 4 sepals still half-wrapped around the flower, and with the 4 very short stigmas protruding at the top. The 4 leaves here peel off from the sheath surrounding the thinner flower-stem(s).


11th June 2016, Cronton ex-Colliery, Prescott, Sefton. Photo: © RWD
The as-yet unopened capsule with the 4 short stigmas protruding. (Raindrops hang on to various parts).


11th June 2016, Cronton ex-Colliery, Prescott, Sefton. Photo: © RWD
This specimen somewhat strangely has has 4 fawn-coloured and dark-brown patterned capsule which appear to be opening. It is surrounded by 4 shorter, green sepals.


11th June 2016, Cronton ex-Colliery, Prescott, Sefton. Photo: © RWD
A fully opened sepals displaying the semi-translucent capsule. On the far left a leaf with a short acuminate point less than 0.2mm long.


11th June 2016, Cronton ex-Colliery, Prescott, Sefton. Photo: © RWD
A capsule 2 to 3mm long sits atop opened sepals, still dripping wet from recent rain.


22nd April 2007, place unknown Photo: © Bastiaan Brak
A rare photo! It does not usually have any petals on show, and on the rare occasion they do, they are very short! The developing capsule is the paler-green sphere in the centre. Surrounding it are 4 (sometimes 5) pale-green filaments with white anthers. On the top of the developing capsule are the 4 white fuzzy styles.

The cupped green sepals have a translucent border around their edge.

There is an as-yet unopened flower one the lower left cupped at the moment by one or two narrow leaves.

Hybridizes with :

  • Alpine Peralwort (Sagina saginoides) to produce Sagina × normaniana which is intermediate between its two parents and only partially fertile. It is a rare [RR] with slightly shorter capsules and usually 10 stamens (more than 5).
  • Heath Pearlwort (Sagina subulata) to produce Sagina × micrantha × which inherits the procumbent posture of Procumbent Pearlwort but has scattered glandular hairs.
Uniquely identifiable characteristics

Distinguishing Feature :

No relation to : Pearly Everlasting (Anaphalis margaritacea), Pearlfruit (Margyricarpus pinnatus) nor with Pearlwort Spurrey (Spergula morisonii) [plants with similar names belonging to differing families].

It is native and grows on paths, lawns, beside ditches or on short grass and all sorts of bare ground.

  Sagina procumbens  ⇐ Global Aspect ⇒ Caryophyllaceae  

Distribution
family8Carnation & Campion (Pink) family8Caryophyllaceae
 BSBI maps
genus8Sagina
Sagina
(Pearlworts)

PROCUMBENT PEARLWORT

Sagina procumbens

Carnation & Campion (Pink) Family [Caryophyllaceae]