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alpine bitter-cress

cut-leaf toothwort

Habit Perennials (somewhat cespitose, subscapose); glabrous throughout. Perennials; usually sparsely pubescent, sometimes glabrous.
Rhizomes

absent (caudex usually with slender, rarely stout, rhizomelike branches).

(tuberiform, fragile), moniliform, segments fusiform, 2–10(–20) mm diam. (fleshy).

Stems

erect to ascending, branched (several), 0.1–0.8(–1.4) dm, glabrous.

erect, unbranched, (1–)2–4(–5.5) dm, glabrous or pubescent distally.

Basal leaves

rosulate, simple, (0.6–)1.2–5(–7) cm;

petiole (3–)1–3.5(–5.5) cm;

blade usually ovate to oblong, rarely oblanceolate to obovate, (0.4–)0.8–1.7(–2.5) cm × (2–)5–10(–16) mm, base cuneate to obtuse, margins usually entire, rarely repand or obtusely small-toothed (apex obtuse).

Rhizomal leaves

3-foliolate, (7–)10–20(–30) cm, leaflets sessile;

petiole (4–)7–18(–25) cm;

lateral leaflets similar to terminal, blade sometimes smaller;

terminal leaflet blade oblong, lanceolate, oblanceolate, or linear, 2.5–6 cm, base cuneate, margins coarsely dentate to incised, laciniate, or 3-lobed (lobes usually toothed to incised, rarely entire, surfaces puberulent or not, trichomes 0.2–0.3 mm).

Cauline leaves

0 or 1 (or 2), simple, shortly petiolate;

petiole base not auriculate;

blade similar to basal leaves, much smaller.

(2 or) 3, 3-foliolate (usually whorled or opposite, rarely alternate, similar in morphology to rhizomal leaves), petiolate, leaflets petiolulate or subsessile;

petiole (1–)1.5–6(–7.5) cm, base not auriculate;

lateral leaflets sessile, blade similar to terminal, sometimes smaller;

terminal leaflet subsessile or petiolulate (to 3 cm), blade lanceolate, linear, or oblanceolate, (3–)4–10(–12) cm × (3–)5–20(–25) mm, margins usually coarsely dentate to incised, rarely subentire (margins minutely puberulent).

Racemes

ebracteate.

ebracteate.

Flowers

sepals oblong, 2–3(–4) × 0.8–1.5(–2) mm, lateral pair not saccate basally;

petals white, oblanceolate, 4–5.5(–7) × 1.3–2(–2.5) mm (not clawed, apex rounded or emarginate);

filaments: median pairs 2.5–4 mm, lateral pair 2–3 mm;

anthers oblong, 0.5–0.9 mm.

sepals oblong, (4–)5–8 × 2–4 mm, lateral pair slightly saccate basally;

petals white to pale pink, oblanceolate, (8–)10–20 × (3–)4–7(–9) mm, (short-clawed, apex rounded);

filaments: median pairs 8–12 mm, lateral pair 6–8 mm;

anthers oblong-linear, 1.5–2.5 mm.

Fruiting pedicels

ascending to erect, 3–6(–8) mm.

ascending to divaricate, (6–)10–27(–33) mm.

Fruits

linear, (0.8–)1.3–2.8(–3.7) cm × 1.3–2 mm;

ovules 8–18 per ovary;

style 0.5–3 mm.

linear-lanceolate, (2–)2.5–3.8(–4.8) cm × 1.5–3 mm; (valves glabrous or sparsely pubescent);

ovules 10–14 per ovary;

style (2–)5–9(–12) mm.

Seeds

brown, oblong, 1.5–2 × 0.9–1.2 mm.

brown, oblong, 1.6–3 × 1.8–2 mm.

2n

= 16.

= 128–256.

Cardamine bellidifolia

Cardamine concatenata

Phenology Flowering Jun–Sep. Flowering Feb–May.
Habitat Mossy areas, tundra, marshes at stream headwaters, cliffs, talus slopes, barren chert slopes, moist rock crevices, rocky slopes, alpine streams, sandy beaches, moist rocky streambeds Wooded bottoms and bluffs, rich woods, limestone cliffs and outcrops, rocky banks, mesic forests, moist areas with leaf litter, floodplain woods
Elevation 0-2300 m (0-7500 ft) 0-1000 m (0-3300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; CA; ME; NH; OR; WA; AB; BC; LB; NT; NU; QC; YT; Greenland; n Europe; Asia (Russian Far East, Siberia)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; SC; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; ON; QC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Source FNA vol. 7, p. 468. FNA vol. 7, p. 470.
Parent taxa Brassicaceae > tribe Cardamineae > Cardamine Brassicaceae > tribe Cardamineae > Cardamine
Sibling taxa
C. angulata, C. angustata, C. blaisdellii, C. breweri, C. bulbosa, C. californica, C. clematitis, C. concatenata, C. constancei, C. cordifolia, C. digitata, C. diphylla, C. dissecta, C. douglassii, C. flagellifera, C. flexuosa, C. hirsuta, C. holmgrenii, C. impatiens, C. longii, C. macrocarpa, C. maxima, C. micranthera, C. microphylla, C. nuttallii, C. nymanii, C. occidentalis, C. oligosperma, C. pachystigma, C. parviflora, C. pattersonii, C. penduliflora, C. pensylvanica, C. pratensis, C. purpurea, C. rotundifolia, C. rupicola, C. umbellata
C. angulata, C. angustata, C. bellidifolia, C. blaisdellii, C. breweri, C. bulbosa, C. californica, C. clematitis, C. constancei, C. cordifolia, C. digitata, C. diphylla, C. dissecta, C. douglassii, C. flagellifera, C. flexuosa, C. hirsuta, C. holmgrenii, C. impatiens, C. longii, C. macrocarpa, C. maxima, C. micranthera, C. microphylla, C. nuttallii, C. nymanii, C. occidentalis, C. oligosperma, C. pachystigma, C. parviflora, C. pattersonii, C. penduliflora, C. pensylvanica, C. pratensis, C. purpurea, C. rotundifolia, C. rupicola, C. umbellata
Synonyms C. bellidifolia var. beringensis, C. bellidifolia var. laxa, C. bellidifolia var. pachyphylla, C. bellidifolia var. pinnatifida Dentaria concatenata, C. laciniata var. integra, C. laciniata var. lasiocarpa, Dentaria laciniata, Dentaria laciniata var. alterna, Dentaria laciniata var. coalescens, Dentaria laciniata var. integra, Dentaria laciniata var. latifolia, Dentaria laciniata var. opposita
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 654. (1753) (Michaux) O. Schwarz: Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. 46: 188. (1939)
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