What is "lychnis flos-cuculi"

Gillyflower \Gil"ly*flow`er\, n. [OE. gilofre, gilofer, clove, OF. girofre, girofle, F. girofle: cf. F. girofl['e]e gillyflower, fr. girofle, Gr. ? clove tree; ? nut + ? leaf, akin to E. foliage. Cf. Caryophyllus, July-flower.] [Written also gilliflower.] (Bot.)

1. A name given by old writers to the clove pink ( Dianthus Caryophyllus) but now to the common stock ( Matthiola incana), a cruciferous plant with showy and fragrant blossoms, usually purplish, but often pink or white.

2. A kind of apple, of a roundish conical shape, purplish red color, and having a large core.

   Clove gillyflower, the clove pink.

   Marsh gillyflower, the ragged robin ( Lychnis Flos-cuculi).

   Queen's gillyflower, or Winter gillyflower, damewort.

   Sea gillyflower, the thrift ( Armeria vulgaris).

   Wall gillyflower, the wallflower ( Cheiranthus Cheiri).

   Water gillyflower, the water violet.

Ragged \Rag"ged\ (r[a^]g"g[e^]d), a. [From Rag, n.]

1. Rent or worn into tatters, or till the texture is broken; as, a ragged coat; a ragged sail.

2. Broken with rough edges; having jags; uneven; rough; jagged; as, ragged rocks.

3. Hence, harsh and disagreeable to the ear; dissonant. [R.] ``A ragged noise of mirth.''
   --Herbert.

4. Wearing tattered clothes; as, a ragged fellow.

5. Rough; shaggy; rugged.

   What shepherd owns those ragged sheep?
   --Dryden.

   Ragged lady (Bot.), the fennel flower ( Nigella Damascena).

   Ragged robin (Bot.), a plant of the genus Lychnis ( Lychnis Flos-cuculi), cultivated for its handsome flowers, which have the petals cut into narrow lobes.

   Ragged sailor (Bot.), prince's feather ( Polygonum orientale).

   Ragged school, a free school for poor children, where they are taught and in part fed; -- a name given at first because they came in their common clothing. [Eng.] [1913 Webster] -- Rag"ged*ly, adv. -- Rag"ged*ness, n.

Cuckooflower \Cuck"oo*flow`er\ (-flou`?r), n. (Bot.) A species of Cardamine ( Cardamine pratensis), or lady's smock. Its leaves are used in salads. Also, the ragged robin ( Lychnis Flos-cuculi).

Lychnis flos-cuculi, commonly called Ragged-Robin, is a herbaceous perennial plant in the family Caryophyllaceae. It is species is native to Europe, where it is found along roads and in wet meadows and pastures. In Britain it has declined in numbers because of modern farming techniques and draining of wet-lands and is no longer common. However, Lychnis flos-cuculi has become naturalized in parts of the northern United States and eastern Canada and has been listed as potentially invasive in some areas.