Taxon: Gypsophila vaccaria (L.) Sm.

Summary

Genus:

Gypsophila

Family:

Caryophyllaceae

Subfamily:

Caryophylloideae

Tribe:

Caryophylleae

Nomen number:

480426

Place of publication:

J. Sibthorp & J. E. Smith, Fl. Graec. prodr. 1:279. 1809

Protologue link:

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/6114598

Comment:

for authorship of names in this work see comment in TL-2 5:577. 1985

Verified:

03/22/2018 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

7 (6 active, 6 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Basionym
Saponaria vaccaria L.

Homotypic Synonym(s)
Saponaria vaccaria L. var. vaccaria
Vaccaria vaccaria (L.) Britton, nom. inval.
Vaccaria vulgaris Host

Heterotypic Synonym(s)


Vaccaria pyramidata Medik.
Vaccaria segetalis (Neck.) Garcke ex Asch.
Vaccaria hispanica (Mill.) Rauschert
Vaccaria hispanica (Mill.) Rauschert subsp. hispanica
Vaccaria hispanica (Mill.) Rauschert subsp. grandiflora (Ser.) Holub
Vaccaria hispanica (Mill.) Rauschert var. grandiflora (Ser.) Leonard
Saponaria vaccaria L. var. grandiflora Ser.
Vaccaria parviflora Moench
Saponaria hispanica Mill.
Saponaria segetalis Neck.
Vaccaria hispanica (Mill.) Rauschert var. hispanica

Images (1 total. Click on image for more.)

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
Madhani, H. et al. 2018. Untangling phylogenetic patterns and taxonomic confusion in tribe Caryophylleae (Caryophyllaceae) with special focus on generic boundaries. Taxon 67:105-106. DOI: 10.12705/671.6.

Common names

Language	Name	note	seq	Citation
English	bladder-soapwort	as Vaccaria hispanica	1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource). Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
English	China cockle	as Vaccaria hispanica	1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource). Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
English	cow cockle	as Vaccaria hispanica	1	Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
English	cowherb	as Vaccaria hispanica	1	Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
English	cow-soapwort	as Vaccaria hispanica	1	Integrated Botanical Information System (IBIS). Australian plant common name database (on-line resource). Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
Arabic	ful al-arab	as Vaccaria hispanica	2	Boulos, L. 1999-. Flora of Egypt Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
French	saponaire des vaches	as Vaccaria hispanica	2	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America. Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
German	Kuhlkraut	as Vaccaria hispanica	2	Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
Swedish	åkernejlika	as Vaccaria hispanica	2	Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource) Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
Transcribed Chinese	mai lan cai	as Vaccaria hispanica	2	Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition). Note: as Vaccaria hispanica

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Africa	Northern Africa	Algeria			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Africa	Northern Africa	Egypt			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Africa	Northern Africa	Libya			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Africa	Northern Africa	Morocco			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Africa	Northern Africa	Tunisia			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Armenia			Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Azerbaijan			Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Georgia			Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Caucasus	Russian Federation-Ciscaucasia	Ciscaucasia		Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	China	China			Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Kazakhstan			Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Kyrgyzstan			Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Tajikistan			Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Turkmenistan			Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Middle Asia	Uzbekistan			Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Mongolia	Mongolia			Grubov, V. I. 2001. Key to the vascular plants of Mongolia
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Russian Far East	Russian Federation	Primorye		Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Russian Far East	Russian Federation-Far East	Far East		Krasnoborov, I. M., ed. 2000-. Flora of Siberia (English translation)
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Siberia	Russian Federation	Altay		Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Siberia	Russian Federation-Eastern Siberia	Eastern Siberia		Krasnoborov, I. M., ed. 2000-. Flora of Siberia (English translation)
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Siberia	Russian Federation-Western Siberia	Western Siberia		Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Cyprus			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Egypt	Sinai		Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Iran			Rechinger, K. H., ed. 1963-. Flora iranica. Note: = Vaccaria grandiflora (Ser.) Jaub. & Spach
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Iraq			Rechinger, K. H., ed. 1963-. Flora iranica. Note: = Vaccaria grandiflora (Ser.) Jaub. & Spach
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Israel			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Jordan			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Lebanon			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Syria			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Western Asia	Turkey			Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
1	Native	Eurasia		Russian Federation
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Belarus			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Moldova			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Russian Federation-European part	European part		Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Ukraine			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Austria			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Belgium			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Czech Republic			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Germany			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Hungary			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Slovakia			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Switzerland			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Albania			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Bosnia and Herzegovina			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Bulgaria			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Croatia			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Former Yugoslavia			Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Greece		incl. Crete	Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Italy		incl. Sardinia, Sicily	Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Montenegro			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	North Macedonia			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Romania			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Serbia			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southeastern Europe	Slovenia			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	France			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	Portugal			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	Spain		incl. Baleares	Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
2	Cultivated					also cult.
4	Naturalized					widely natzd. elsewhere
4	Naturalized	Africa	Northeast Tropical Africa	Eritrea			Hedberg, I. & S. Edwards. 1989-. Flora of Ethiopia Note: Eritrea added in 2000
4	Naturalized	Africa	Northeast Tropical Africa	Ethiopia			Hedberg, I. & S. Edwards. 1989-. Flora of Ethiopia Note: Eritrea added in 2000
4	Naturalized	Africa	Southern Africa	South Africa			Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
4	Naturalized	Africa	Western Indian Ocean	Mauritius			Bosser, J. M. et al., eds. 1976-. Flores des Mascareignes.
4	Naturalized	Africa	Western Indian Ocean	Reunion			Bosser, J. M. et al., eds. 1976-. Flores des Mascareignes.
4	Naturalized	Asia-Temperate	Arabian Peninsula	Qatar			Miller, A. G. & T. A. Cope. 1996-. Flora of the Arabian Peninsula and Socotra.
4	Naturalized	Asia-Temperate	Arabian Peninsula	Saudi Arabia		natzd. elsewhere	Miller, A. G. & T. A. Cope. 1996-. Flora of the Arabian Peninsula and Socotra.
4	Naturalized	Asia-Temperate	Arabian Peninsula	Yemen			Miller, A. G. & T. A. Cope. 1996-. Flora of the Arabian Peninsula and Socotra.
4	Naturalized	Asia-Temperate	Eastern Asia	Japan			Iwatsuki, K. et al. 1993-. Flora of Japan.
4	Naturalized	Asia-Tropical	Indo-China	Thailand			Smitinand, T. & K. Larsen, eds. 1970-. Flora of Thailand.
4	Naturalized	Australasia	Australia	Australia			Lazarides, M. & B. Hince. 1993. CSIRO Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Southern South America	Argentina			Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
4	Naturalized	Southern America	Southern South America	Uruguay			Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.

Native
Africa

NORTHERN AFRICA: Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia

Asia-Temperate

WESTERN ASIA: Cyprus, Egypt [Sinai], Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey
CAUCASUS: Russian Federation-Ciscaucasia [Ciscaucasia], Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia
SIBERIA: Russian Federation-Western Siberia [Western Siberia], Russian Federation-Eastern Siberia [Eastern Siberia], Russian Federation [Altay]
MIDDLE ASIA: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
MONGOLIA: Mongolia
RUSSIAN FAR EAST: Russian Federation-Far East [Far East], Russian Federation [Primorye]
CHINA: China

Eurasia

REGION: Russian Federation

Europe

MIDDLE EUROPE: Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia
EASTERN EUROPE: Russian Federation-European part [European part], Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine
SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE: Former Yugoslavia, Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece (incl. Crete), Croatia, Italy (incl. Sardinia, Sicily), North Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia
SOUTHWESTERN EUROPE: Spain (incl. Baleares), France, Portugal

Cultivated (also cult.)
Naturalized

REGION:

Africa

NORTHEAST TROPICAL AFRICA: Eritrea, Ethiopia
SOUTHERN AFRICA: South Africa
WESTERN INDIAN OCEAN: Mauritius, Reunion

Asia-Temperate

ARABIAN PENINSULA: Qatar, Saudi Arabia (natzd. elsewhere), Yemen
EASTERN ASIA: Japan

Asia-Tropical

INDO-CHINA: Thailand

Australasia

AUSTRALIA: Australia

Southern America

SOUTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Argentina, Uruguay

Reference(s)

Bosser, J. M. et al., eds. 1976-. Flores des Mascareignes.
Euro+Med Editorial Committee. Euro+Med Plantbase: the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity (on-line resource).
Germishuizen, G. & N. L. Meyer, eds. 2003. Plants of southern Africa: an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14 National Botanical Institute, Pretoria, South Africa.
Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
Greuter, W. et al., eds. 1984-. Med-Checklist.
Grubov, V. I. 2001. Key to the vascular plants of Mongolia
Hedberg, I. & S. Edwards. 1989-. Flora of Ethiopia Note: Eritrea added in 2000
Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. 2008. Flora del Conosur. Catálogo de las plantas vasculares.
Iwatsuki, K. et al. 1993-. Flora of Japan.
Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
Krasnoborov, I. M., ed. 2000-. Flora of Siberia (English translation)
Lazarides, M. & B. Hince. 1993. CSIRO Handbook of Economic Plants of Australia
Miller, A. G. & T. A. Cope. 1996-. Flora of the Arabian Peninsula and Socotra.
Rechinger, K. H., ed. 1963-. Flora iranica. Note: = Vaccaria grandiflora (Ser.) Jaub. & Spach
Smitinand, T. & K. Larsen, eds. 1970-. Flora of Thailand.
Wu Zheng-yi & P. H. Raven et al., eds. 1994-. Flora of China (English edition).

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Environmental	ornamental	as Vaccaria hispanica	Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
Environmental	ornamental	as Vaccaria hispanica	Erhardt, W. et al. 2008. Der große Zander: Enzyklopädie der Pflanzennamen Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
Medicines	folklore	as Vaccaria hispanica	McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland. Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
Medicines	folklore	as Vaccaria hispanica	Rabeler, R. K. 1996. pers. comm. Note: re. common names
Vertebrate poisons	mammals	as Saponaria vaccaria	Kingsbury, J. M. 1964. Poisonous plants of the United States and Canada. Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
Vertebrate poisons	mammals	as Vaccaria hispanica	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America. Note: as Vaccaria hispanica
Weed	seed contaminant	potential; as Vaccaria hispanica	Gleason, H. A. & A. Cronquist. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada, ed. 2 Note: as Vaccaria hispanica

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=480426. Accessed 14 April 2026.