Greater Stitchwort

Rabelera holostea – formally Stellaria holostea

• Has small delicate white flowers, which dot woodland tracks and the bottoms of hedgerows in May.
• Initially it looks like 10 petals but look closely and there are 5 deeply lobed petals.
• Greater Stitchwort has a range of common names, all referencing some part or use of the plant.
• Snapdragon and snapcrackers reference the ease with which the hollow stem breaks. This is also referenced in the second part of its Scientific name holostea – which is Greek for entire bone.
• Poppers refers to the way it fires out its seeds in May.
• Rabelera holostea is the only plant in the Rabelera genus and was moved into this genus in 2019.