Boechera arcuata |
Boechera saximontana |
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arching rockcress, elegant rockcress |
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Habit | Perennials; usually long-lived; sexual; caudex often woody (well-developed). | Perennials; short-lived; apomictic; caudex usually not woody. |
Stems | usually 1 per caudex branch, arising from center of rosette, elevated on woody base or from ground surface, (2–)3–8 dm, densely pubescent proximally, trichomes short-stalked, 2-rayed and simple, to 1 mm, pubescent distally. |
usually 1 per caudex branch, arising from center of rosette near ground surface, 0.7–3 dm, densely pubescent proximally, trichomes short-stalked, 2–6-rayed, 0.06–0.25 mm, glabrous distally. |
Basal leaves | blade linear to oblanceolate, 2–7(–12) mm wide, margins usually entire, rarely denticulate, ciliate along petiole, trichomes to 1.5 mm, surfaces densely pubescent, trichomes usually short-stalked, 2–5-rayed (rarely some simple), 0.4–0.8 mm. |
blade narrowly oblanceolate, 1–3 mm wide, margins entire, ciliate near petiole base, trichomes (simple and spurred), to 0.4 mm, surfaces sparsely to densely pubescent, trichomes short-stalked, 4–8-rayed, 0.04–0.15 mm. |
Cauline leaves | 10–30(–45), often concealing stem proximally; blade auricles 2–5(–6) mm, surfaces of distalmost leaves pubescent. |
5–9, rarely concealing stem proximally; blade auricles to 0.3–1 mm, surfaces of distalmost leaves glabrous. |
Racemes | 12–50(–70)-flowered, usually unbranched. |
5–13-flowered, usually unbranched. |
Flowers | ascending at anthesis; sepals pubescent; petals purple, 9–14 × 2–4 mm, glabrous or sparsely pubescent (trichomes abaxially); pollen ellipsoid. |
ascending at anthesis; sepals pubescent; petals lavender, 4–5 × 0.5–0.8 mm, glabrous; pollen spheroid. |
Fruiting pedicels | usually divaricate-ascending, rarely horizontal, gently recurved or straight, 8–22 mm, pubescent, trichomes subappressed, 2–4-rayed. |
divaricate-ascending, straight, 3–8 mm, glabrous. |
Fruits | usually divaricate-ascending, rarely horizontal, not appressed to rachis, not secund, usually curved, edges parallel, (6–)8–13 cm × 1.5–2.2 mm; valves glabrous or trichomes relatively few, scattered; ovules 90–250 per ovary; style 0.01–0.5 mm. |
divaricate-ascending, not appressed to rachis, not secund, straight, edges parallel, (2.5–)3–4.7 cm × 1.2–1.7 mm; valves glabrous; ovules 78–112 per ovary; style 0.1–0.5 mm. |
Seeds | uniseriate or sub-biseriate, 1.5–1.7 × 1–1.2 mm; wing continuous, 0.1–0.2 mm wide. |
uniseriate to sub-biseriate, 1.1–1.4 × 0.7–0.9 mm; wing continuous, 0.05–0.12 mm wide. |
Boechera arcuata |
Boechera saximontana |
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Phenology | Flowering Mar–Jun. | Flowering Jun–Jul. |
Habitat | Rocky hillsides and cliffs in pine forests and chaparral | Rocky soil in sagebrush and open conifer forests |
Elevation | 300-1800 m (1000-5900 ft) | 2400-2900 m (7900-9500 ft) |
Distribution |
CA
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ID; WY |
Discussion | Although usually treated as a variety of Arabis (Boechera) sparsiflora (e.g., R. C. Rollins 1993), B. arcuata is easily distinguished from that species by having rachises and fruiting pedicels pubescent with subappressed, 2–4-rayed trichomes and a geographic range limited to southern and western California. By contrast, B. sparsiflora has rachises and fruiting pedicels with spreading, usually simple trichomes (sometimes glabrescent) and an allopatric distribution north and east of the Sierra Nevada. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Boechera saximontana is an apomictic taxon that has been treated as a variety of either Arabis microphylla (R. C. Rollins 1941) or A. (Boechera) williamsii (Rollins 1993; R. D. Dorn 2001). It is easily distinguished from typical collections of those species (see M. D. Windham and I. A. Al-Shehbaz 2007b for detailed comparison), but it is likely that one (or both) were involved in its hybrid origin. It is known from Blaine, Custer, and Lemhi counties in Idaho, and Big Horn and Fremont counties in Wyoming. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 7, p. 365. | FNA vol. 7, p. 404. |
Parent taxa | Brassicaceae > tribe Boechereae > Boechera | Brassicaceae > tribe Boechereae > Boechera |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Streptanthus arcuatus, Arabis holboellii var. arcuata, Arabis maxima, Arabis sparsiflora var. arcuata | Arabis microphylla var. saximontana, Arabis pendulocarpa var. saximontana, Arabis williamsii var. saximontana, B. williamsii var. saximontana |
Name authority | (Nuttall) Windham & Al-Shehbaz: Harvard Pap. Bot. 11: 64. (2006) | (Rollins) Windham & Al-Shehbaz: Harvard Pap. Bot. 12: 248. (2007) |
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