''Colobanthus'' is a large genus of small,

cushion A cushion is a soft bag of some ornamental material, usually stuffed with wool, hair, feathers, polyester staple fiber, non-woven material, cotton, or even paper torn into fragments. It may be used for sitting or kneeling upon, or to soften ...

-like

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition ...

plants in the family

Caryophyllaceae Caryophyllaceae, commonly called the pink family or carnation family, is a family of flowering plants. It is included in the dicotyledon order Caryophyllales in the APG III system, alongside 33 other families, including Amaranthaceae, Cactace ...

, sometimes known as "pearlworts", a name they share with plants of the related genus ''

Sagina ''Sagina'' (like '' Colobanthus'' called "pearlworts") is a genus of 20–30 species of flowering plants in the family Caryophyllaceae. These are flowering herbs native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere extending south to tropical ...

''. ''C. quitensis'' is

the world's southernmost The most southerly geographical features of various types are listed here. Cities and settlements Geography Islands Berkner Island is further south than any of these, but its bedrock lies entirely below sea level, with only its ice cov ...

dicot, and one of only two native extant flowering plants of

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...

Selected species

* '' Colobanthus acicularis'' Hook. f. * '' Colobanthus affinis'' (Hook) Hook. f. * '' Colobanthus apetalus'' (Labill.) Druce synonym = ''Spergula apetala'' * '' Colobanthus bolivianus'' Pax * '' Colobanthus brevisepalus'' Kirk * ''

Colobanthus buchananii ''Colobanthus'' is a large genus of small, cushion-like herbaceous plants in the family Caryophyllaceae, sometimes known as "pearlworts", a name they share with plants of the related genus ''Sagina''. ''C. quitensis'' is the world's southernmost ...

'' Kirk * '' Colobanthus caespitosus'' Colenso * '' Colobanthus canaliculatus'' Kirk * ''

Colobanthus curtisiae ''Colobanthus'' is a large genus of small, cushion-like herbaceous plants in the family Caryophyllaceae, sometimes known as "pearlworts", a name they share with plants of the related genus ''Sagina''. ''C. quitensis'' is the world's southernmo ...

'' J.G. West * '' Colobanthus diffusus'' Hook. f. * '' Colobanthus hookeri'' Cheeseman * '' Colobanthus kerguelensis'' Hook. f. * '' Colobanthus lycopodoides'' Griseb. * '' Colobanthus masonae'' L.B. Moore * '' Colobanthus monticola'' Petrie * '' Colobanthus muelleri'' Kirk = ''C. billardieri'' var. ''brachypoda'' * '' Colobanthus muscoides'' Hook. f. * '' Colobanthus nivicola'' M. Gray * '' Colobanthus pulvinatus'' F. Muell. * '' Colobanthus quitensis'' (Kunth) Bartl., = ''C. alatus'', ''C. aretioides'', ''C. billardieri'', ''C. cherlerioides'', ''C. crassifolius'', ''C. crassifolius'' var. ''aretioides'', ''C. maclovianus'', ''C. meingeni'', ''C. quitensis'' var. ''alatus'', ''C. saginoides'', ''Sagina crassifolia'', ''S. quitensis'', ''Spergula affinis''? * ''

Colobanthus repens ''Colobanthus'' is a large genus of small, cushion-like herbaceous plants in the family Caryophyllaceae, sometimes known as "pearlworts", a name they share with plants of the related genus ''Sagina''. ''C. quitensis'' is the world's southernmost ...

'' Colenso * ''

Colobanthus squarrosus ''Colobanthus'' is a large genus of small, cushion-like herbaceous plants in the family Caryophyllaceae, sometimes known as "pearlworts", a name they share with plants of the related genus ''Sagina''. ''C. quitensis'' is the world's southernmo ...

'' Cheeseman * ''

Colobanthus strictus ''Colobanthus'' is a large genus of small, cushion-like herbaceous plants in the family Caryophyllaceae, sometimes known as "pearlworts", a name they share with plants of the related genus ''Sagina''. ''C. quitensis'' is the world's southernmo ...

'' (Cheeseman) Cheeseman * '' Colobanthus subulatus'' (d'Urv.) Hook. f. * '' Colobanthus wallii'' Petrie

References

Caryophyllaceae genera {{Caryophyllaceae-stub