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Silene gallica

Common Catchfly · English Catchfly · French Catchfly

Family CaryophyllaceaeGenus Silene

Small flowers with white petals blotched deep crimson at the base, spaced up a dark slender stem, with one pink bud at the top.
Flower(Hans Hillewaert)CC BY-SA 3.0

About the plant

What it is and where it grows — not part of any germination protocol.

Habit
annualPlants of the World Online
Habit
Annual, Biennial, Forb/herbPLANTS Database
Flower
White, pinkFlora of North America
Native range
Albania, Algeria, Austria, Azores, Baleares, Bulgaria and elsewhereGBIF Backbone Taxonomy

Toxicity is noted only where a source states it. No note here is not a finding of safety.

Sources: Plants of the World Online — Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; PLANTS Database — USDA NRCS; Flora of North America — Flora of North America Editorial Committee; GBIF Backbone Taxonomy — Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Worth knowing

  • Windmill pink, also called small-flowered catchfly, is native to Eurasia and North Africa but has become a common roadside weed through much of the temperate world. Wikipedia: Silene gallica

This source reports 4 treatments. All are shown.

Protocol 1

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1996

Difficulty Low Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around October 3, 2027 for a May 3 last frost. Too late for spring 2027 — that needed starting on October 2, 2026.

  1. Dry storage

    Duration: 180 daysTemperature: 70°F 21°C

  2. Sow and cover

    Temperature: 70°F 21°C Light: light

about 6 months from start to sowing. Then 5 days to germinate.

100% germination in 5 days.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement — N. C. Deno, 1996 · 1st Supplement, Silene p. 78Public domain
Show the original text
Silene (Caryophyllaceae). S. gallica seed DS 6 m germ. 70L(100% on 5th d), 70D(75% on 5th d), OT(31% in March), and 40(5%)-70D. After 1 y DS the seeds germ. 100% in 3-5 d in either 70L or 70D. It is suspected that fresh seeds had a light requirement which had largely disappeared in the seeds DS 6 m and had completely disappeared in seeds DS 1 y. The prior 3 m at 40 was largely fatal which is surprising.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement, 1st Supplement, Silene p. 78. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 2

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1996

Difficulty Low Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around October 3, 2027 for a May 3 last frost. Too late for spring 2027 — that needed starting on October 2, 2026.

  1. Dry storage

    Duration: 180 daysTemperature: 70°F 21°C

  2. Sow and cover

    Temperature: 70°F 21°C Light: dark

about 6 months from start to sowing. Then 5 days to germinate.

75% germination in 5 days.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement — N. C. Deno, 1996 · 1st Supplement, Silene p. 78Public domain
Show the original text
Silene (Caryophyllaceae). S. gallica seed DS 6 m germ. 70L(100% on 5th d), 70D(75% on 5th d), OT(31% in March), and 40(5%)-70D. After 1 y DS the seeds germ. 100% in 3-5 d in either 70L or 70D. It is suspected that fresh seeds had a light requirement which had largely disappeared in the seeds DS 6 m and had completely disappeared in seeds DS 1 y. The prior 3 m at 40 was largely fatal which is surprising.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement, 1st Supplement, Silene p. 78. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 3

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1996

Difficulty Moderate Rated by us, not by the source.

  1. Dry storage

    Duration: 180 daysTemperature: 70°F 21°C

  2. Sow outdoors and leave it

    Up in March.

about 6 months from start to sowing.

31% germination.

This source doesn't state how long step 2 lasts.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement — N. C. Deno, 1996 · 1st Supplement, Silene p. 78Public domain
Show the original text
Silene (Caryophyllaceae). S. gallica seed DS 6 m germ. 70L(100% on 5th d), 70D(75% on 5th d), OT(31% in March), and 40(5%)-70D. After 1 y DS the seeds germ. 100% in 3-5 d in either 70L or 70D. It is suspected that fresh seeds had a light requirement which had largely disappeared in the seeds DS 6 m and had completely disappeared in seeds DS 1 y. The prior 3 m at 40 was largely fatal which is surprising.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement, 1st Supplement, Silene p. 78. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 4

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1996

Difficulty Very high Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around September 17, 2027 for a May 3 last frost. Too late for spring 2027 — that needed starting on September 16, 2026.

  1. Dry storage

    Duration: 180 daysTemperature: 70°F 21°C

  2. Cold moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 40°F 4°C

  3. Warm moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 70°F 21°C Light: dark

Steps after step 2 run on after germination.

about 6 months from start to step 2. Germination happens during step 2; time not stated, 21 days assumed.

5% germination.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement — N. C. Deno, 1996 · 1st Supplement, Silene p. 78Public domain
Show the original text
Silene (Caryophyllaceae). S. gallica seed DS 6 m germ. 70L(100% on 5th d), 70D(75% on 5th d), OT(31% in March), and 40(5%)-70D. After 1 y DS the seeds germ. 100% in 3-5 d in either 70L or 70D. It is suspected that fresh seeds had a light requirement which had largely disappeared in the seeds DS 6 m and had completely disappeared in seeds DS 1 y. The prior 3 m at 40 was largely fatal which is surprising.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement, 1st Supplement, Silene p. 78. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

How each step is done, in Deno’s words, and what Verified and Derived mean.

Germination trials

Readers’ own records of sowing this species, published after review. Share your trial · All trials

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