Στελλάρια η κουπανιάνα
Etymology of Stellaria cupaniana: "Stellaria" is the Latin female of "stellar" which is a reference to the shape of its flowers. Stellaria cupaniana was named as such for Francesco (Francis) Cupani, an 18th-century Italian monk and natural scientist who wrote Hortus catholicus.
There are four Stellaria species in the Cypriot habitat.
Stellaria cupaniana is a common plant in Cyprus, encountered all around the island except in the Central Mesaoria region. It grows at an altitude of 50 - 1375 metres. Stellaria cupaniana is found on cultivated soil, wasteland and roadsides. It flowers between January and April.
How to identify Stellaria cupaniana:
As it is extremely difficult to distinguish one Stellaria species from the other, we need to go into detail about the characteristics of Stellaria cupaniana to separate it from the others. Stellaria cupaniana's lower leaves are distinctly petiolate, ovate; its capsule reaches up to 4 millimetres wide and its seeds are 0.8-1.4 millimetres long. Of the four Stellaria species that exist in Cyprus, only Stellaria cupaniana's upper parts of the stem are glandular-pubescent, and its petals are as long as its sepals. Finally, only Stellaria cupaniana has 9 or 10 stamens.
