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boechera paupercula, littleleaf rockcress, small-flower rock-cress, tiny suncress

Short's rockcress

Habit Perennials; long-lived; (cespitose); sexual; caudex often woody. Biennials; short-lived; sexual; caudex present or absent.
Stems

usually 1 per caudex branch, arising from center of rosette near ground surface, 0.3–1.5 dm, densely pubescent proximally, trichomes simple and short-stalked, 2–4-rayed, (0.07–)0.1–0.2 mm, glabrous or sparsely pubescent distally.

usually 2–4 per plant or caudex branch, arising from margin of rosette near ground surface, or arising laterally proximal to sterile shoots, 2–6 dm, pubescent proximally, trichomes short-stalked, 2–4-rayed, 0.15–0.4 mm, sparsely pubescent or glabrous distally.

Basal leaves

blade linear-oblanceolate, 1–3(–5) mm wide, margins entire, ciliate proximally, trichomes to 0.4 mm, surfaces densely pubescent, trichomes short-stalked, 2–6-rayed, (0.07–)0.1–0.2 mm.

blade obovate to oblanceolate, (6–)10–45 mm wide, margins dentate, not ciliate, surfaces sparsely pubescent, abaxially trichomes short-stalked, 3- or 4-rayed, 0.15–0.4 mm, adaxially simple ones, 0.4–1 mm.

Cauline leaves

2–6, rarely concealing stem;

blade auricles 0 (or 0.2–1.5) mm, surfaces of distalmost leaves glabrous.

4–20, rarely concealing stem;

blade auricles 1–8 mm, surfaces of distalmost leaves sparsely pubescent.

Racemes

3–8-flowered, unbranched.

14–66-flowered, sparingly branched.

Flowers

erect at anthesis;

sepals glabrous or sparsely pubescent;

petals lavender to purplish, 4–6(–7) × 1–2 mm, glabrous;

pollen ellipsoid.

divaricate at anthesis;

sepals glabrous or sparsely pubescent;

petals white or cream, 2–3.5 × 0.7–1 mm, glabrous;

pollen ellipsoid.

Fruiting pedicels

erect, straight, 3–9 mm, glabrous or sparsely pubescent.

divaricate-ascending to slightly descending, straight, 1–6 mm, glabrous or pubescent, trichomes appressed, branched.

Fruits

erect, appressed to rachis, not secund, straight, edges parallel, 2.5–5.5 cm × 1.3–1.7(–2) mm;

valves glabrous;

ovules 24–40 per ovary;

style 0.2–1 mm.

divaricate-ascending to slightly descending, not appressed to rachis, not secund, straight or slightly curved, edges parallel, 1.3–4.2 cm × 0.7–0.8 mm;

valves usually sparsely pubescent throughout, rarely glabrous;

ovules 14–44 per ovary;

style 0.1–0.5 mm.

Seeds

usually uniseriate, rarely sub-biseriate, 1.5–2(–2.5) × 1–1.4 mm;

wing continuous, 0.3–1 mm wide.

uniseriate, 0.7–1.1 × 0.5–0.6 mm;

not winged.

Boechera paupercula

Boechera dentata

Phenology Flowering Jun–Aug. Flowering Apr–Jun.
Habitat Rock outcrops, talus slopes, gravelly soil in alpine and subalpine habitats Bluffs and rocky ledges, wooded slopes, floodplains
Elevation 2400-3400 m (7900-11200 ft) 100-300 m (300-1000 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; ID; OR; WA; WY
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; DC; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; MD; MI; MN; MO; NE; NY; OH; OK; PA; SD; TN; VA; WI; WV; ON
[WildflowerSearch map]
Discussion

Boechera paupercula is usually subsumed under Arabis (Boechera) lyallii but is amply distinct (see M. D. Windham and I. A. Al-Shehbaz 2006 for detailed comparison).

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

Sisymbrium dentatum Torrey is an illegitimate name that pertains to Iodanthus dentatus.

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

Source FNA vol. 7, p. 394. FNA vol. 7, p. 373.
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. 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. 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. 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. 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
Synonyms Arabis paupercula, Arabis lyallii var. nubigena, Arabis microphylla var. nubigena, Arabis nubigena Shortia dentata, Arabis dentata var. phalacrocarpa, Arabis perstellata var. shortii, Arabis shortii, Arabis shortii var. phalacrocarpa, B. shortii, Iodanthus dentatus
Name authority (Greene) Windham & Al-Shehbaz: Harvard Pap. Bot. 11: 75. (2006) (Rafinesque) Al-Shehbaz & Zarucchi: Harvard Pap. Bot. 13: 293. (2008)
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