FLORA OF ICELAND elements: Silene acaulis, moss campion

Silene acaulis; The moss campion is common on sandy dry, often eroded, soils from the coastal regions to the desert sands of the highlands. The, often hemispherical shaped, cushions are very characteristic. It seems that in the past this plant was used as a vegetable source on Iceland when times where bad for the outback peasants (also see a note on the Stelaria media weed - also a pink family member - on the chickweed page). The leaves are a little succulent ("fleshy") which could explain why people used this as a food source in the past. The plant has a central root from which spread circularly short stems with short-stalked flowers. This leads to the characteristic spherical tussocks.
It is a member of the pink family (Caryophyllaceae).

Back to home page