Common Mouse-Ear Chickweed
Cerastium holosteoides

Family: Caryophyllaceae

What it is like

Cerastium holosteoides is a ANNUAL/PERENNIAL growing to 0.3 m (1ft). It is in flower from April to September. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Flies. The plant is self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist soil.

Height (m): 0.3

Where it is found

Mostly in wet places. Grassland, shingle, dunes, waysides, waste places and cultivated ground.

A cosmopolitan plant, found n most regions of the world, including Britain.

Conservation Status:

Countries/locations it is found in

How it is used

Food

Rating: 2

Leaves and young shoots. This report refers to the sub-species C. holosteoides glandulosum. Koch..

Medicine

Rating: 0

Other

Rating:

How it is grown

See the plants native habitat for ideas on its cultivation needs. This species is closely related to C. fontanum, the common mouse-ear, and is seen as no more than a sub-species of that species by many botanists.

Propagating it: Seed - we have no information on this species but suggest sowing the seed in spring in a cold frame. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out into their permanent positions in the summer. Division in spring might be possible.

Best place to grow: Cultivated Beds;

Habit: Annual/Perennial

Hardiness:

Growth:

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Moist

Things to keep in mind

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

C. triviale. Link.