Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Caryophyllales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Cerastium nutans
FAMILY
Caryophyllaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Read more about Nodding Mouse-ear Chickweed at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Cerastium nutans var. nutans
FAMILY
Caryophyllaceae
INCLUDING Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 5 (2005)
Cerastium nutans var. nutans
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 071-08-005a:
Cerastium nutans var. nutans FAMILY Caryophyllaceae
INCLUDING Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Cerastium longepedunculatum
COMMON NAME:
Nodding Mouse-ear Chickweed, Nodding Chickweed
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_celo6_001_lvd
)
Kevin Caldwell kev_c_nutans4
April Buncombe County NC
Sepals ~1/5" long & pointed; petals bisected, as long or longer than sepals, per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
)
Kevin Caldwell kev_c_nutans5
April Buncombe County NC
The stem is somewhat pubescent, per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
)
Kevin Caldwell kev_c_nutans6
April Buncombe County NC
Leaves are elliptic to lanceolate, sessile to nearly clasping, per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
)
Kevin Caldwell kev_c_nutans7
April Buncombe County NC
Leaves 1.5-2" long and 1/4" wide, with a somewhat acute tip, per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
)
Kevin Caldwell kev_c_nutans8
April Buncombe County NC
Pedicels long and slender (1-1.5"), much longer than the flower and capsule, per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Cerastium nutans
FAMILY
Caryophyllaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Cerastium nutans var. nutans
FAMILY
Caryophyllaceae
INCLUDING
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 5
Cerastium nutans var. nutans
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 071-08-005a:
Cerastium nutans var. nutans
FAMILY
Caryophyllaceae
INCLUDING
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Cerastium longepedunculatum
2202
Forb
Annual
Habitat: alluvial forests, bottomlands, moist forests, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in NC Mountains & NC Piedmont, uncommon in SC Mountains (rare elsewhere in GA-NC-SC)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Simple
Opposite
FLOWER:
Spring
White or absent
Radially symmetrical
5 sepals
5 petals (or petals absent)
5 or 10 stamens
Superior ovary
Usually bisexual
FRUIT:
Spring
Yellow
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p129
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p009
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p040
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".