Meadow campion

By insidetests.com
— May 26, 2025
- 8:17 pm

Meet meadow campion, a wildflower loved for its charming pink blossoms! It’s a bee-friendly favorite that supports vital pollinators, while its leaves have been historically used in herbal remedies. Spot it by its subtly hairy stems and distinctive inflated flower calyx – a papery lantern protecting the petals! Meadow campion adds beauty and life to meadows everywhere.

Table of Contents

Meadow campion Description

Common Name	Meadow campion
Scientific Name	Silene flos-cuculi
Family	N/A
Genus	N/A

Introduction to Meadow campion

🌱 Introduction

Meadow Campion (Silene pratensis) is a charming wildflower, easily recognized by its delicate white or pinkish flowers and distinctive inflated calyx tubes, often associated with folklore and traditional medicine.

🌞 Growing Requirements

Thriving in USDA zones 3-9, Meadow Campion prefers well-drained soil, full sun to partial shade, and moderate watering, tolerating temperatures from below freezing to warm summer conditions.

✂️ Care Guide

Plant seeds or seedlings in spring or fall, prune spent flowers to encourage further blooming, provide occasional feeding with a balanced fertilizer, and monitor for slugs or aphids, addressing them with appropriate treatments; cut back foliage in late fall.

🎨 Landscaping Uses

Meadow Campion adds a whimsical touch to cottage gardens, wildflower meadows, and borders, pairing well with other informal plants like daisies, poppies, and grasses; it can be grown in containers but prefers open ground.

🌍 Eco Benefits

This plant is a valuable pollinator attractor, particularly for nocturnal moths, contributing to biodiversity, and its deep roots can help improve soil health and prevent erosion in naturalized areas.

Characteristics of Meadow campion

🌼 Physical Description

Meadow campion isn’t actually a grass, even though it looks like one! Think of its leaves as having a slender, arching form, like delicate, green ribbons. They create a fine texture, reaching about 2-3 feet tall. In late summer, it produces feathery plumes, almost like miniature fireworks going off at ground level.

🌱 USDA Zone

Zone 4

🌴 Growth Habits

This plant is a team player, forming dense, but non-invasive, clumps. These clumps have shallow, fibrous roots. It’s a long-lived perennial, meaning it will keep coming back year after year – thriving for 5+ years with division! So, think of it as a reliable, low-maintenance member of your garden crew.

🍂 Environmental Adaptability

Meadow campion is pretty easy-going. It enjoys full sun to light shade. Once established, it can tolerate drought, similar to a cactus. It prefers well-drained, slightly acidic soil, much like blueberries. In essence, it’s adaptable to various environmental conditions, but thrives in a slightly acidic environment.

🍃 Unique Traits

What sets it apart from other grasses? It holds its upright form without needing constant haircuts (mowing). Its seedheads shimmer in the breeze, resembling frosted cobwebs or delicate, twinkling lights. So, it’s not just a plant; it’s a work of art.

🌾 Practical Implications

Meadow campion is your friend in the garden! It’s perfect for low-maintenance landscapes, helping to control erosion like a natural barrier, supporting pollinators which act as tiny helpers for your garden, and providing winter interest with its straw-colored stems, adding a touch of color even when covered with snow.

Meadow campion Summery

Alright, so let’s talk about Meadow Campion, or Silene flos-cuculi if you want to get fancy. It’s a delightful little wildflower, not flashy, but subtly captivating. Picture this: a slender, somewhat floppy stem, usually around knee-high, topped with these raggedy, star-shaped pink flowers. Each petal is deeply divided, almost looking torn, giving it this charmingly unkempt appearance. You’ll most often find it happily bobbing in, well, meadows! Also damp pastures, roadsides, or even peeking out from the edges of woodlands, especially in Europe and parts of Asia. It thrives in slightly damp, undisturbed areas, and when you see a little cluster of them, it almost feels like they’re whispering secrets amongst themselves.

Interestingly, humans have used Meadow Campion in surprising ways. Historically, the leaves were occasionally used as a potherb, though apparently, they’re a bit bland. It’s more valued for its beauty and its role as a nectar source for moths and butterflies. There aren’t any particularly strong folklore tales clinging to it like some other wildflowers, but its name “flos-cuculi”, meaning “cuckoo flower”, hints at a connection to springtime and the arrival of cuckoos. Some also say it’s because the flowers appear around the same time the cuckoo calls. It’s a humble plant, really, quietly adding a touch of pink to the landscape and supporting the local wildlife. Isn’t that lovely?

Meadow campion Faq

What is Meadow Campion?

Meadow Campion, also known as Red Campion or Silene dioica, is a common wildflower found in meadows, woodlands, and hedgerows.

What does Meadow Campion look like?

It has hairy stems, opposite pairs of oval-shaped leaves, and bright pink or red flowers with deeply notched petals.

Where does Meadow Campion typically grow?

It thrives in damp, fertile soil and is commonly found in Europe and parts of Asia, as well as naturalized in North America.

When does Meadow Campion flower?

Meadow Campion typically flowers from late spring to early autumn, usually between May and September.

Is Meadow Campion good for wildlife?

Yes, it is an excellent source of nectar for bees, butterflies, and moths.

Is Meadow Campion poisonous?

While not highly toxic, it can cause mild stomach upset if ingested in large quantities.

Can I grow Meadow Campion in my garden?

Yes, it’s easy to grow from seed and prefers a sunny or partially shaded location with well-drained soil.

How can I propagate Meadow Campion?

It can be propagated by seed in the spring or autumn or by division in the spring.

Is Meadow Campion an invasive species?

No, it is not generally considered invasive and is a valuable native plant in many regions.

What are some other names for Meadow Campion?

Other names include Red Campion, Red Catchfly, and Devil’s Flower.

Field-scabious

Meadow vetchling

Disc mayweed

Lesser spearwort

Creeping buttercup

Policeman’s-helmet

Japanese knotweed

Common bird’s-foot trefoil

🍂 TAGS#

#botany (67) #nature (67) #plant (67) #Autumn hawkbit (1) #Bennet's-root (1) #Black sedge (1) #Blue-green sedge (1) #Bracken (1) #Burnet-saxifrage (1) #Coltsfoot (1) #Common bird's-foot trefoil (1) #Common chickweed (1) #Common marsh bedstraw (1) #Common nettle (1) #Common vetch (1) #Cow vetch (1) #Cow-parsley (1) #Cowslip (1) #Creeping buttercup (1) #Cypress spurge (1) #Disc mayweed (1) #European ash (1) #European broom (1) #European fivefinger (1) #European hornbeam (1) #Evergreen oak (1) #Field-scabious (1) #Garden sorrel (1) #Grass-leaf starwort (1) #Hairy sedge (1) #Hawthorn (1) #Heath speedwell (1) #Heather (1) #Jacobaea (1) #Japanese knotweed (1) #Lesser spearwort (1) #Meadow campion (1) #Meadow vetchling (1) #Oxeye daisy (1) #Persian speedwell (1) #Policeman's-helmet (1) #Purple loosestrife (1) #Raspberry (1) #River horsetail (1) #Rough bluegrass (1) #Rubus fruticosus (1) #Scotch pine (1) #Slender false brome (1) #Sloe (1) #Suckling clover (1) #White birch (1) #Wild angelica (1) #Wood bluegrass (1) #Woodbine (1) #Yellow bedstraw (1) #Argentina anserina (0) #Bitter nightshade (0) #Carrot (0) #Cinquefoil (0) #Common hemp-nettle (0) #Common ladyfern (0) #Common mouse-ear (0) #Common plantain (0) #Common spruce (0) #Cowgrass clover (0) #Curled dock (0) #European alder (0) #European aspen (0) #Felonherb (0) #Garlic mustard (0) #Klamathweed (0) #Olive (0) #Perennial quaking grass (0) #Purple moor grass (0) #Spindle (0) #Tufted hairgrass (0) #Umbrella pine (0)