German Moss Scleranthus annuus
Other Common Name(s):
- Description
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Knawel is a winter annual weed in the pink family that is native to Eurasia and Africa. It has been introduced to much of the USA and Canada. This small plant grows 2-5 inches tall and the spreading and ascending stems can form dense mats. They germinate in winter and grow during warm spells, bloom in early spring and die in late spring or early summer. They spread by seeds.
This weed can grow in a variety of conditions and is often found in disturbed sites, fields and lawns. It prefers sandy and gravelly soils and is drought tolerant but tolerates moist sites and sun to partial shade.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Scleranthus
- Species:
- annuus
- Family:
- Caryophyllaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- Has been used in herbal medicine
- Life Cycle:
- Annual
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Macaronesia, Europe, Asia, North Africa
- Distribution:
- Eastern, Central and Pacific coast of USA and Canada
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Weed
- Habit/Form:
- Creeping
- Horizontal
- Prostrate
- Spreading
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Shallow Rocky
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasionally Dry
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Fruit:
- Fruit Type:
- Capsule
- Fruit Description:
- Egg-shaped capsule with 1 seed
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Flowers:
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Insignificant
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Shape:
- Star
- Flower Petals:
- Colored Sepals
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- 1/8 inch flowers in dense clusters at the tips of forking branches. The petal-like sepals are green with white edges, 2-10 yellow stamens and somewhat spiny to the touch.
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Leaves:
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Opposite
- Leaf Shape:
- Linear
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- < 1 inch
- Leaf Width:
- < 1 inch
- Leaf Description:
- Up to 1 inch long opposite linear to slightly curved green leaves with stiff points are fused at the base. They are arranged at right angles to the pair above and below. The dense spacing can make them appear whorled.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Green
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Surface:
- Smooth (glabrous)
- Stem Description:
- Stems have many branches and are spreading to ascending. They are hairless to minutely hairy.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Lawn
- Problems:
- Weedy
