Bladder Campion
Silene cucubalus
Family Caryophyllaceae

Characteristics:
* Calyx inflated and veined, suggesting a melon or a bladder.
* Petals white, deeply cleft.
* Leaves long-pointed, opposite on stem.
* Height: 8-18".

Natural History:
* Flowers April - August.
* Habitat: Roadsides, fields.
* Range: Throughout the United States.
* Introduced from Europe.

Connections!
* Some of the many titles Massachusetts dwellers have given to Bladder Campion include Behen (a corruption of the Arabic word for 'root'), Devil's-Rattle-Box, Snappers, Fairy-Potatoes, Bird's-Eggs, and Cowbell.

* The spittle bug loves the Bladder Campion...so brushing up against the plant could leave you with a portion of the insect's handiwork.

* "The leaves boiled have something of the flavor of pease, and proved of great use to the inhabitants of the island of Minorca in the year 1685, when a swarm of locusts had destroyed the vegetation."
-William Withering, 1776