Images: ©Jouko Lehmuskallio
Silverweed
Argentina anserina
- Family: Rose Family – Rosaceae
- Height: Creeping runners 30–80 cm (12–32 in.) long.
- Flower: Regular (actinomorphic), fairly large. Petals free, five, bright yellow. Calyx five-lobed, hairy. Carpels free, more than 20. Stamens 20. Flowers axillary, solitary, long-stalked, stalks hairy.
- Leaves: In tufts, short-stalked. Blade odd-pinnate, leaflets in 7–12 pairs (ssp. anserina), 3–6 pairs (ssp. egedii), elliptic, with toothed margins, almost hairless above, silkily-hairy and greyish-white beneath. Stipules membranous, long and brown.
- Fruit: The receptacle bears several brown, globose achenes.
- Habitat: Yards, paths, lawns, parks, fields, waste ground, roadsides, boat harbours, also virgin seashores.
- Flowering time: June–August.
The silverweed spreads efficiently by means of runners which it produces in abundance. The species is very variable. It is a plant of open habitats that demands at least slightly damp conditions.
A subspecies egedii is distinguished from the more common ssp. anserina by its fleshy and more strongly serrate leaves. It occurs on seashores only.
