Lesser Sea-spurrey

Spergularia marina

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Plant Data

Flowering Months:

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC

Order:

Caryophyllales

Family:

Caryophyllaceae (Pink)

Also in this family:

Annual Pearlwort, Bladder Campion, Bog Stitchwort, Bouncing Bett, Childing Pink, Clove Pink, Common Chickweed, Common Corn-cockle, Common Mouse-ear, Common Soapwort, Corn Spurrey, Deptford Pink, Greater Chickweed, Greater Stitchwort, Knotted Pearlwort, Lesser Stitchwort, Procumbent Pearlwort, Proliferous Pink, Ragged Robin, Red Campion, Rock Sea-spurrey, Sea Campion, Sea Sandwort, Snow-in-summer, Spring Sandwort, Sticky Mouse-ear, Sweet William, Three-nerved Sandwort, Thyme-leaved Sandwort, White Campion

Type:

Flower

Life Cycle:

Annual or Perennial

Maximum Size:

35 centimetres tall

Habitats:

Beaches, ditches, roadsides, saltmarshes, seaside.

Flower:

Pink, 5 petals

5 pink petals whitening towards the centre. Distinguishable from Greater Sea-spurrey in that it has longer sepals than petals, and that it bears smaller, pinker flowers.

Fruit:

A brown oval pod, up to 6mm long. Many-seeded.

Leaves:

Linear, fleshy leaves, in opposite pairs, up to 4cm long.

Other Names:

Salt Sandspurry, Saltmarsh Sand Spurry.

Frequency (UK):

Occasionally seen

Distribution Map

Reproduced by kind permission of the BSBI.

Click to open an Interactive Map