{{Short description|Species of flowering plant}} {{Speciesbox |image = Moenchia erecta i01.jpg |genus = Moenchia |species = erecta |authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|L.]]) [[P.Gaertn.]], [[Bernhard Meyer|B.Mey.]] & [[Johannes Scherbius|Scherb.]] |synonyms_ref = <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/record/kew-2369380 |title=''Moenchia erecta'' |publisher=[[The Plant List]] |accessdate=4 August 2017}}</ref> |synonyms = *''Alsine erecta'' <small>(L.) Crantz</small> *''Alsine quaternella'' <small>(Ehrh.) E.H.L.Krause</small> *''Alsinella erecta'' <small>(L.) Moench</small> *''Cerastium erectum'' <small>(L.) Coss. & Germ.</small> *''Cerastium erectum'' <small>Cosson & Germ.</small> *''Cerastium octandrum'' <small>(Ziz ex Mert. & W.D.J.Koch) E.G.Camus</small> [''[[nomen illegitimum|nom. illeg.]]''] *''Cerastium quaternellum'' <small>Fenzl</small> *''Doerriena erecta'' <small>(L.) Borkh.</small> *''Malachium erectum'' <small>(L.) Gren.</small> *''Malachium octandrum'' <small>(Ziz ex Mert. & W.D.J.Koch) Gren.</small> *''Moenchia octandra'' <small>(Ziz ex Mert. & W.D.J.Koch) J.Gay</small> *''Sagina erecta'' <small>L.</small> *''Sagina octandra'' <small>Ziz ex Mert. & W.D.J.Koch</small> }}

'''''Moenchia erecta''''', the '''erect chickweed''' or '''upright chickweed''' (though the latter name may refer to any species of ''[[Moenchia]]''), is a small annual plant in the family [[Caryophyllaceae]]. It can grow to over 10&nbsp;cm in height, but it is usually smaller. It has blue-green glaucous [[leaf|leaves]], and small, delicate white [[flower]]s. The [[sepal]]s are longer than the petals, green and bordered in white. The plant is a common pasture weed native to [[Europe]]. It has been [[introduced species|introduced]] elsewhere, including [[Australia]] and western [[North America]], but it is not particularly [[invasive species|invasive]] or competitive.

In areas where it has been introduced, it springs up opportunistically in gardens, mowed fields, and other disturbed areas. It prefers moist places, such as grassy [[floodplain]]s near marshes and coastal hills. The plant grows well in bare, sandy, gravelly soils, such as those at shorelines or on overgrazed fields.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.brc.ac.uk/plantatlas/index.php?q=plant/moenchia-erecta |title=''Moenchia erecta'' |work=Online Atlas of the British and Irish Flora |publisher=[[Biological Records Centre]] |accessdate=4 August 2017}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *{{commons category-inline|Moenchia erecta|''Moenchia erecta''}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q160144}}

[[Category:Caryophyllaceae]] [[Category:Plants described in 1753]] [[Category:Botanical taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]] [[Category:Flora of Europe]]