Bladder campion
Silene vulgaris
Family · Caryophyllaceae · Harmless
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The white flower with a striped balloon behind the petals, which children pop between their hands. In Spain, collejas are a wild vegetable with a long tradition, and one of the best there is.
Fields and pasture · Roadsides and waste ground · Uplands · Walls and rocks
Also known asmaidenstears, bladder catchfly
How to tell it
The inflated balloon calyx, whitish with a net of veins, is unmistakable and unmatched among common plants. Five white petals deeply cut in two. Opposite, bluish, hairless leaves.
What it is confused with
White campion
Silene latifolia
Very similar and also harmless. White campion is hairy and sticky and opens at night; bladder campion is smooth and bluish. The mistake has no consequence.
What it is for
Shoots and tender leaves are eaten cooked, in omelette, rice and soups, especially in Castile and Aragón, where gathering collejas is a spring ritual. Picked before flowering, while still soft.
Traditionally used as food. This is not permission to eat it.
Where it occurs
Each square is an area with recorded observations of this plant. The lighter background is the set of areas where any of the entries has been observed, and serves as a reference. Note what this is not: it is not where the plant lives, it is where people record it, so trails and towns always look fuller than the mountains. Data from GBIF.
Sources
Community
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