| Silene gallica | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Core eudicots |
| Order: | Caryophyllales |
| Family: | Caryophyllaceae |
| Genus: | Silene |
| Species: | S. gallica |
| Binomial name | |
| Silene gallica L. |
|
Silene gallica is a species of flowering plant in the pink family known by several common names, including common catchfly, small-flowered catchfly, and windmill pink. It is native to Eurasia and North Africa, but it can be found throughout much of the temperate world as a common roadside weed. It is an annual herb growing up to 40 or 45 centimeters tall, its branching stem coated in long, curling hairs and shorter, glandular hairs. The lance-shaped leaves are up to 3.5 centimeters long low on the plant, and smaller on the upper parts. Flowers occur in a terminal inflorescence at the top of the stem, and some appear in the leaf axils. Each flower has a tubular calyx of fused sepals lined with ten green or purple-red veins. It is coated in long hairs. It is open at the tip, revealing five white, pink or bicolored petals, each with a small appendage at the base.