Lychnis chalcedonica
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| Lychnis chalcedonica Linnaeus |
Lychnis chalcedonica (Maltese Cross, Jerusalem Cross, Dusky Salmon, Burning Love, or Nonesuch; syn. Silene chalcedonica) is a flowering plant in the family Caryophyllaceae, native from central and eastern European Russia east to Kazakhstan, Mongolia and northwestern China.
It is a herbaceous perennial plant growing to 35-100 cm tall with unbranched stems. The leaves are produced in opposite pairs, simple broad lanceolate, 2-12 cm long and 1-5 cm broad. The flowers are produced in clusters of 10-50 together; each flower is bright red, 1-3 cm diameter, with a deeply five-lobed corolla, with each lobe further split into two smaller lobes, which creates a general shape similar to the Maltese Cross to which it owes its name. The fruit is a dry capsule containing numerous seeds.
[edit] Cultivation and uses
Lychnis chalcedonica is a popular ornamental plant in gardens. 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.
The species can become naturalised or even invasive if plants are allowed to set seed; it is naturalised in some parts of North America. Thomas Jefferson is known to have sowed this plant at Monticello in 1807.
[edit] References
- Flora of China: Lychnis chalcedonica
- Ornamental Plants From Russia: Lychnis chalcedonica
- Flora Europaea: Lychnis chalcedonica
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