The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

bluepod rockcress

elegant rockcress, sickle-pod rock-cress, slender rockcress, stretching suncress

Habit Perennials; short- to long-lived; sexual; caudex usually not woody. Biennials or perennials; short-lived; sexual; caudex present or absent.
Stems

usually 1 per caudex branch, arising from center of rosette near ground surface, (0.6–)1–4.5 dm, densely pubescent proximally, trichomes short-stalked, 4–8-rayed, 0.1–0.4 mm, similarly pubescent distally.

usually 1 per caudex branch, arising from center of rosette near ground surface, 3–8 dm, densely pubescent proximally, trichomes simple mixed with fewer short-stalked, 2-rayed ones, 0.4–1.5 mm, glabrous or sparsely pubescent distally.

Basal leaves

blade linear to linear-oblanceolate, 2–4(–6) mm wide, margins entire, usually ciliate at petiole base, trichomes (simple or spurred), to 1.5 mm, surfaces densely pubescent, trichomes short-stalked, 4–8-rayed, 0.1–0.4 mm.

blade oblanceolate or linear-oblanceolate, 3–12 mm wide, margins usually entire, rarely dentate, ciliate proximally, trichomes (usually simple), to 1 mm, surfaces densely pubescent, trichomes short-stalked, 2–5-rayed, 0.3–0.8 mm.

Cauline leaves

6–10, not concealing stem;

blade auricles absent, surfaces of distalmost leaves densely pubescent.

(9–)15–35, often concealing stem proximally;

blade auricles 3–10 mm, surfaces of distalmost leaves glabrous, sometimes margins ciliate.

Racemes

(5–)10–25-flowered, usually unbranched.

12–50-flowered, usually unbranched.

Flowers

divaricate at anthesis;

sepals pubescent;

petals light purple to lavender, 6–9 × 1.5–2.5 mm, glabrous;

pollen ellipsoid.

ascending at anthesis;

sepals sparsely pubescent;

petals usually lavender to purple, rarely white, 7–13 × 2–5 mm, glabrous;

pollen ellipsoid.

Fruiting pedicels

reflexed, strongly curved at base, 2–10 mm, pubescent, trichomes appressed, branched.

usually ascending, rarely almost horizontal, straight or slightly recurved, 3–10(–18) mm, usually pubescent, rarely glabrous, trichomes spreading, usually simple.

Fruits

strongly reflexed, sometimes appressed to rachis, often secund, straight, edges parallel, (1.8–)2.5–4.5 cm × 5–8 mm;

valves glabrous;

ovules 24–62 per ovary;

style 0.2–0.6 mm.

usually ascending, rarely almost horizontal, not appressed to rachis, not secund, usually curved, edges parallel, 5–13 cm × 1.7–2 mm;

valves glabrous;

ovules 90–170 per ovary;

style 0.05–0.3 mm.

Seeds

biseriate, 5–6 × 4–5 mm;

wing continuous, 1.8–2.5 mm wide.

uniseriate, 1.5–2 × 1–1.5 mm;

wing continuous, 0.1–0.2 mm wide.

2n

= 14.

= 14.

Boechera glaucovalvula

Boechera sparsiflora

Phenology Flowering Mar–Apr. Flowering Apr–Jun.
Habitat Rocky slopes and gravelly soil, usually under shelter of desert shrubs Rocky slopes, clay hills, sandy soil in sagebrush and mountain shrub communities, meadows, and open conifer forests
Elevation 600-1600 m (2000-5200 ft) 400-2800 m (1300-9200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; NV
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; ID; NV; OR; UT; WA; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Boechera glaucovalvula, a distinctive sexual diploid that has the widest fruits in the genus, is known from Inyo, Mono, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties, California, and Clark and Nye counties, Nevada.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

As circumscribed by R. C. Rollins (1993), Boechera sparsiflora included six varieties encompassing three sexual diploids and a number of apomictic hybrids. The most distinctive of those elements are recognized here as the separate species B. arcuata, B. atrorubens, B. californica, and B. pauciflora. The narrow circumscription of B. sparsiflora adopted here includes only sexual diploids. It is distinguished from other taxa previously assigned to it by having proximal stems densely pubescent with predominantly simple (some 2-rayed) trichomes to 1.5 mm, usually glabrous distal stems, and ascending fruiting pedicels with spreading, usually simple trichomes (rarely glabrous).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 7, p. 380. FNA vol. 7, p. 407.
Parent taxa Brassicaceae > tribe Boechereae > Boechera Brassicaceae > tribe Boechereae > Boechera
Sibling taxa
B. acutina, B. arcuata, B. atrorubens, B. bodiensis, B. breweri, B. burkii, B. calderi, B. californica, B. canadensis, B. cascadensis, B. cobrensis, B. collinsii, B. consanguinea, B. constancei, B. covillei, B. crandallii, B. cusickii, B. davidsonii, B. dentata, B. depauperata, B. dispar, B. divaricarpa, B. drepanoloba, B. duchesnensis, B. elkoensis, B. evadens, B. falcatoria, B. falcifructa, B. fecunda, B. fendleri, B. fernaldiana, B. formosa, B. fructicosa, B. glareosa, B. goodrichii, B. gracilenta, B. gracilipes, B. grahamii, B. gunnisoniana, B. harrisonii, B. hastatula, B. hoffmannii, B. holboellii, B. horizontalis, B. howellii, B. inyoensis, B. johnstonii, B. koehleri, B. laevigata, B. languida, B. lasiocarpa, B. lemmonii, B. lignifera, B. lincolnensis, B. lyallii, B. macounii, B. microphylla, B. missouriensis, B. nevadensis, B. ophira, B. oxylobula, B. paddoensis, B. pallidifolia, B. parishii, B. pauciflora, B. paupercula, B. peirsonii, B. pendulina, B. pendulocarpa, B. perennans, B. perstellata, B. pinetorum, B. pinzliae, B. platysperma, B. polyantha, B. porphyrea, B. pratincola, B. puberula, B. pulchra, B. pusilla, B. pygmaea, B. quebecensis, B. rectissima, B. repanda, B. retrofracta, B. rigidissima, B. rollei, B. rollinsiorum, B. rubicundula, B. saximontana, B. schistacea, B. serotina, B. serpenticola, B. shevockii, B. shockleyi, B. sparsiflora, B. spatifolia, B. stricta, B. subpinnatifida, B. suffrutescens, B. texana, B. tiehmii, B. tularensis, B. ultra-alsa, B. villosa, B. williamsii, B. xylopoda, B. yorkii
B. acutina, B. arcuata, B. atrorubens, B. bodiensis, B. breweri, B. burkii, B. calderi, B. californica, B. canadensis, B. cascadensis, B. cobrensis, B. collinsii, B. consanguinea, B. constancei, B. covillei, B. crandallii, B. cusickii, B. davidsonii, B. dentata, B. depauperata, B. dispar, B. divaricarpa, B. drepanoloba, B. duchesnensis, B. elkoensis, B. evadens, B. falcatoria, B. falcifructa, B. fecunda, B. fendleri, B. fernaldiana, B. formosa, B. fructicosa, B. glareosa, B. glaucovalvula, B. goodrichii, B. gracilenta, B. gracilipes, B. grahamii, B. gunnisoniana, B. harrisonii, B. hastatula, B. hoffmannii, B. holboellii, B. horizontalis, B. howellii, B. inyoensis, B. johnstonii, B. koehleri, B. laevigata, B. languida, B. lasiocarpa, B. lemmonii, B. lignifera, B. lincolnensis, B. lyallii, B. macounii, B. microphylla, B. missouriensis, B. nevadensis, B. ophira, B. oxylobula, B. paddoensis, B. pallidifolia, B. parishii, B. pauciflora, B. paupercula, B. peirsonii, B. pendulina, B. pendulocarpa, B. perennans, B. perstellata, B. pinetorum, B. pinzliae, B. platysperma, B. polyantha, B. porphyrea, B. pratincola, B. puberula, B. pulchra, B. pusilla, B. pygmaea, B. quebecensis, B. rectissima, B. repanda, B. retrofracta, B. rigidissima, B. rollei, B. rollinsiorum, B. rubicundula, B. saximontana, B. schistacea, B. serotina, B. serpenticola, B. shevockii, B. shockleyi, B. spatifolia, B. stricta, B. subpinnatifida, B. suffrutescens, B. texana, B. tiehmii, B. tularensis, B. ultra-alsa, B. villosa, B. williamsii, B. xylopoda, B. yorkii
Synonyms Arabis glaucovalvula Arabis sparsiflora, Arabis arcoidea, Arabis campyloloba, Arabis peramoena, Arabis polytricha, Arabis sparsiflora var. peramoena
Name authority (M. E. Jones) Al-Shehbaz: Novon 13: 385. (2003) (Nuttall) Dorn: Vasc. Pl. Wyoming ed. 3, 376. (2001)
Web links