Silene chalcedonica
{{Short description|Species of flowering plant}}
{{Speciesbox
|image=Lychnis chalcedonica B.jpg
|genus=Silene
|species=chalcedonica
|authority=(L.) E.H.L.Krause
|synonyms_ref={{r|powo}}
|synonyms=*Lychnis chalcedonica {{small|L.}}
- Lychnis fulgida {{small|Moench}}
}}
Silene chalcedonica (syn. Lychnis chalcedonica), the Maltese-cross{{r|BSBI07}}{{r|foa}}{{r|grin}} or scarlet lychnis,{{r|foa}}{{r|grin}} is a species of flowering plant in the family Caryophyllaceae, native to Eurasia. Other common names include flower of Bristol, Jerusalem cross{{r|ornrus}} and nonesuch.{{r|pl}}
It is a popular ornamental plant and has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
Description
It is a perennial herbaceous plant growing {{Convert|35-100|cm|abbr=off}} tall with unbranched stems. The simple, broadly lanceolate leaves are produced in opposite pairs. Each leaf ranges between {{cvt|2-12|cm|0}} long and {{Convert|1-5|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}} across.
The bright red flowers are produced in clusters of 10-50 together. Each flower {{Convert|1-3|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}} in diameter with a deeply five-lobed corolla, each lobe being further split into two smaller lobes. This forms a general shape similar to that of the Maltese cross to which it owes one of its common names. The fruit is a dry capsule containing numerous seeds.
Taxonomy
{{multiple image
|width=150
|image1=Cross of saint stephen.svg
|alt1=Maltese cross, cross of The Order of Saint Stephen
|image2=Lychnis chalcedonica 2040.jpg
|alt2=Flower of Silene chalcedonica
|footer=A Maltese cross (left) one of many common names for Silene chalcedonica (right, a four-parted flower, though they typically have five cleft lobes)
}}
This plant was first formally named as Lychnis chalcedonica by Carl Linnaeus in 1753.{{r|ipni301029-2}} For purposes of taxonomic stability, the genus name Lychnis was formally rejected in 1994 and the name Silene was conserved.{{r|rabeler1992}}{{r|brummitt1994}} The name Silene chalcedonica was published by Ernst Hans Ludwig Krause in 1901.{{r|powo}}{{r|ipni157059-1}}
The specific epithet chalcedonica refers to the ancient town of Chalcedon in what is now Turkey.{{cite book|last=Harrison|first=Lorraine|title=RHS Latin for gardeners|year=2012|publisher=Mitchell Beazley|location=United Kingdom|isbn=9781845337315|pages=224}}
Numerous common names are attached to this plant, including:{{r|ornrus}}{{r|pl}}{{r|eppo}}
{{Columns-list|colwidth=22em|
- Burning love
- Common rose {{linktext|campion}} (also used for Silene coronaria)
- Constantinople campion
- Dusky salmon
- Fireball
- Flower of Bristol{{cite web |url=http://www.nonesuchexpeditions.com/nonesuch-features/the-nonesuch/nonesuch-flower-of-bristol.htm|title=The Nonesuch: Remarkable Flower of Bristol}}
- Flower of Constantinople
- Gardener's delight
- Gardener's eye
- Great candlestick
- Jerusalem cross
- Knight's cross
- Maltese cross
- Meadow campion
- Nonesuch
- Red robin
- Scarlet lightning
- Scarlet lychnis
- Tears of Christ
}}
Distribution and habitat
The species is native to central and eastern Russia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and northwestern China. It has naturalised in some parts of North America.{{r|fna}} It can be found along roadsides and other disturbed areas, as well as open woodlands, in the northern United States and Canada.{{r|fna}}
Cultivation
File:Lychnis chalcedonica flowers (DSCF6457).jpg
It is a popular ornamental plant in gardens.{{r|foc}} It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.{{cite web |title=Lychnis chalcedonica |url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/10600/Lychnis-chalcedonica/Details |access-date=8 November 2020 |website=www.rhs.org |publisher=Royal Horticultural Society}}{{cite web |url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/pdfs/agm-lists/agm-ornamentals.pdf|title=AGM Plants - Ornamental|date=July 2017|page=62|publisher=Royal Horticultural Society|access-date=25 March 2018}} Numerous cultivars have been selected, varying in flower colour from bright red to orange-red, pink or white. It grows best in partial to full sun and in any good well-drained soil, if provided with a constant moisture supply. The flowering period is extended if faded flowers are removed. It is short-lived in poorly drained soil. Double-flowered cultivars are propagated by division.
In culture
It was voted the county flower of Bristol in 2002, following a poll by the wild flora conservation charity Plantlife.{{r|pl}} Its colour is reflected in the livery and crest of the city's university.{{Cite journal|date=Autumn 2015|title=The nonesuch|url=http://www.bristol.ac.uk/media-library/sites/alumni/documents/nonesuch/UoB_Nonesuch_Issue%2011_Design_v11AW_LORES.pdf|journal=Nonesuch|pages=Inside front cover}}
References
{{Reflist|refs=
{{BSBI 2007 |access-date=2014-10-17 }}
{{cite web |title=Silene chalcedonica E.H.L.Krause, Deutschl. Fl. (Sturm), ed. 2. 5: 96 (1901).
|url=http://ipni.org/n/157059-1 |website=ipni.org |publisher=International Plant Names Index |access-date=4 August 2020}}
{{cite web |title=Silene chalcedonica (L.) E.H.L.Krause |url=https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:157059-1 |website=Plants of the World Online |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |access-date=4 August 2020}}
}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q164019}}