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Blue Mountain rockcress, hoary rock-cress, silver rockcress

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

usually 1 per caudex branch, arising from center of rosette near ground surface, 1–4.5 dm, densely pubescent proximally, trichomes sessile, 2–4-rayed, 0.15–0.5 mm, glabrous distally.

usually 1 per caudex branch, arising from center of rosette near ground surface, (1–)2–6.3 dm, densely pubescent proximally, trichomes short-stalked, 3–8-rayed, 0.1–0.3(–0.5) mm, similarly pubescent distally.

Basal leaves

blade oblanceolate, 5–15 mm wide, margins denticulate, ciliate proximally, trichomes (simple), to 1 mm, surfaces moderately pubescent, trichomes subsessile, (2- or) 3–7-rayed, 0.1–0.3 mm.

blade oblanceolate to linear-oblanceolate, 1.5–5 mm wide, margins usually dentate, not ciliate, surfaces densely pubescent, trichomes short-stalked, 5–12-rayed, 0.05–0.2 mm.

Cauline leaves

4–15, not concealing stem;

blade auricles 1–3.5 mm, surfaces of distalmost leaves glabrous.

7–45(–65), concealing stem proximally;

blade auricles absent or 0.7–3 mm, surfaces of distalmost leaves pubescent.

Racemes

11–41-flowered, usually unbranched.

10–40(–64)-flowered, usually unbranched.

Flowers

divaricate at anthesis;

sepals pubescent;

petals white, 6–7 × 1–2 mm, glabrous;

pollen spheroid.

ascending to descending at anthesis;

sepals pubescent;

petals white to lavender, 5–9 × 0.8–1.8 mm, glabrous;

pollen ellipsoid.

Fruiting pedicels

horizontal to slightly descending, curved to straight, 3–8(–14) mm, glabrous or with some subappressed, branched trichomes.

pendent, recurved distal to horizontal to ascending base, 4–10 mm, pubescent, trichomes appressed, branched.

Fruits

horizontal to slightly descending, not appressed to rachis, secund, straight, edges parallel, 3–6 cm × 1.5–2 mm;

valves glabrous;

ovules 56–94 per ovary.

closely pendent, rarely appressed to rachis, sometimes somewhat secund, usually straight, edges parallel, 3–6.5 cm × 1.9–2.2 mm;

valves pubescent throughout;

ovules 38–64 per ovary;

style 0.05–0.1 mm.

Seeds

uniseriate, 1.2–1.5 × 1–1.3 mm;

wing continuous, 0.1–0.15 mm wide.

uniseriate, 1.4–1.8 × 1–1.4 mm;

wing continuous, 0.1–0.3 mm wide.

2n

= 14.

Boechera quebecensis

Boechera puberula

Phenology Flowering Jun–Jul. Flowering Apr–Jul.
Habitat Calcareous rock outcrops and talus slopes Ledges, rocky slopes, gravelly hillsides in sagebrush, pinyon-juniper, and mountain shrub communities
Elevation 0-300 m (0-1000 ft) 1300-2900 m (4300-9500 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
QC
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; NV; OR; UT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Morphological evidence suggests that Boechera quebecensis is an apomictic species that arose through hybridization between B. holboellii and B. stricta; it is most likely to be confused with B. grahamii (see M. D. Windham and I. A. Al-Shehbaz 2007b for detailed comparison).

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

Boechera puberula is a diploid species that appears to intergrade with both B. retrofracta and B. subpinnatifida. The glabrous-fruited specimens discussed by R. C. Rollins (1993) represent apomictic hybrids with other species, primarily B. pendulocarpa.

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

Source FNA vol. 7, p. 401. FNA vol. 7, p. 399.
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. 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. 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. 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 divaricarpa var. dechamplainii Arabis puberula, Arabis arida, Arabis beckwithii, Arabis lignipes var. impar, Arabis sabulosa, Arabis subpinnatifida var. beckwithii, Arabis subpinnatifida var. impar, B. beckwithii
Name authority Windham & Al-Shehbaz: Harvard Pap. Bot. 12: 246. (2007) (Nuttall) Dorn: Brittonia, 55: 3. (2003)
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