White cockle (Silene alba)

About White Cockle:

White Cockle weed is a biennial or a perennial that reproduces via seed. The stem on a White Cockle weed can grow to be 4 feet tall and has a hairy texture. The seedlings that White Cockle produces are light yellow in colour. White Cockle is known to grow in pastures and on the outskirts of fields. It has moved its way into cultivated fields throughout Southern Ontario.

Family: Pink Family (Caryophyllaceae)

White Cockle Scouting and Prevention:

Knowing what your fields look like when they are perfectly healthy can be a huge advantage when preventing weeds from moving in. By doing frequent checks throughout fields and doing random crop checks on a regular basis, you can prevent weeds like White Cockle from being able to affect the crops in various fields. When doing checks, be sure to look at the outskirts of fields because this is a prime area for White Cockle to grow, as well as pastures, and even outer farm edges.

White Cockle Control:

Other than using preventative methods, your best bet in controlling and hopefully terminating White Cockle from reproducing in your fields is herbicide application. Both pre and post season applications have known to be effective.

Latin / Alternative White Cockle Names:

• - Silene alba (Mill.) E. H. L. Krause
• - MELAL
• - lychnide blanche
• - Compagnon blanc
• - Evening lychnis
• - White campion
• - Oeillet de Dieu
• - Floquet
• - Lychnis alba Mill.

Additional White Cockle Resources: