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small mountain bittercress

Siberian bittercress, umbel bitter-cress, umbellate bittercress

Habit Perennials; glabrous throughout. Perennials; usually glabrous.
Rhizomes

cylindrical, slender, 1–3 mm diam.

often elongated, usually slender, rarely thickened, 1–2(–5) mm diam., (not fleshy).

Stems

erect, unbranched or rarely branched distally, (0.8–)1–2.5(–3.5) dm.

(simple or few to several from base), erect to ascending, (not flexuous), unbranched basally, sometimes branched distally, (0.3–)0.8–2.5(–3) dm.

Basal leaves

(sometimes withered by anthesis), rosulate, pinnately compound, (3 or) 5 or 7 (or 9)-foliolate, 2–5(–9) cm, leaflets petiolulate or subsessile;

lateral leaflets shortly petiolulate or subsessile, blade usually broadly ovate, rarely broadly obovate or orbicular, smaller than terminal, margins usually entire, rarely slightly 3 (or 5)-lobed or crenate;

terminal leaflet subsessile, blade reniform or orbicular, 0.4–0.8(–1.2) cm × 5–9(–16) mm, margins entire or 3 (or 5)-lobed or crenate.

Rhizomal leaves

simple or 3-foliolate, (1.5–)3–8 cm, leaflets petiolulate or subsessile;

petiole (1–)2–6 cm;

lateral leaflets subsessile, blade similar to terminal, much smaller;

terminal leaflet petiolulate (to 1 cm), blade reniform to cordate, (0.5–)1–2 cm, base cordate, margins entire or 3-lobed.

Cauline leaves

3–7, 3-foliolate (or distalmost simple), petiolate, leaflets petiolulate or sessile;

petiole 0.7–3.5 cm, base auriculate (auricle 0.7–5 mm);

lateral leaflets sessile or petiolulate (to 0.5 cm), blade oblong to ovate or oblong;

terminal leaflet (petiolule 0.5–1 cm), blade broadly ovate to suborbicular or reniform, 1.5–4 cm × 15–35 mm, margins often 3 or 5-lobed (lobe apex minutely apiculate, glabrous on margin).

3–5(–7), 3–7 (or 9)-foliolate, petiolate, leaflets subsessile or sessile;

base not auriculate;

lateral leaflets: blade narrowly obovate, oblanceolate to linear, margins similar to terminal;

terminal leaflet blade narrowly obovate, ovate, oblanceolate, lanceolate, oblong, margins usually entire, sometimes 3-lobed or crenate.

Racemes

ebracteate.

ebracteate, (subumbellate, 2–8(–14)-flowered, rachis usually 3–20 mm).

Flowers

sepals oblong, 2.5–3 × 1–1.5 mm, lateral pair not saccate basally;

petals white, oblanceolate, 6–8 × 2–3 mm (not clawed, apex obtuse to subemarginate);

filaments: median pairs 3.5–4 mm, lateral pair 2–2.5 mm;

anthers ovate, ca. 0.7 mm.

sepals (greenish or purplish), oblong, 1–2 × 0.5–1 mm, lateral pair not saccate basally;

petals white, narrowly obovate, 2.5–5 × 1–3 mm.

Fruiting pedicels

divaricate-ascending, (7–)10–17 mm.

suberect to ascending, 3–8(–10) mm.

Fruits

linear, (1.5–)2–3.5(–4) cm × 1.3–1.7 mm;

ovules 10–16 per ovary;

style 2–4 mm.

linear, (torulose), (1.3–)1.8–2.5(–3) cm × 0.8–1.5(–2) mm; (valves glabrous or sparsely pubescent);

style 0.5–2 mm.

Seeds

brown, oblong, 1.7–2 × 1–1.2 mm.

brown, oblong, 1–1.5 × 0.8–1 mm.

2n

= 32, 36, 48.

Cardamine clematitis

Cardamine umbellata

Phenology Flowering May–Jun. Flowering Jun–Sep.
Habitat Wet areas, springs, moist slopes Stream banks, tundra, alpine slopes, wetlands, damp, swampy and mossy areas, beach gravel and sand, alpine stream margins
Elevation 1300-1800 m (4300-5900 ft) 0-1800 m (0-5900 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; FL; GA; NC; TN; VA
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AK; WA; AB; BC; NT; YT; e Asia (Russian Far East)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Recent molecular data (J. Lihová et al. 2006) indicate that Cardamine umbellata, often treated as a variety of C. oligosperma, represents a distinct lineage more closely related to taxa from New Zealand; this does not exclude C. oligosperma as one of the possible parents of this polyploid.

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

Source FNA vol. 7, p. 470. FNA vol. 7, p. 484.
Parent taxa Brassicaceae > tribe Cardamineae > Cardamine Brassicaceae > tribe Cardamineae > Cardamine
Sibling taxa
C. angulata, C. angustata, C. bellidifolia, C. blaisdellii, C. breweri, C. bulbosa, C. californica, 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. 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
Synonyms C. hirsuta subsp. kamtschatica, C. kamtschatica, C. oligosperma var. kamtschatica, C. sylvatica var. kamtschatica
Name authority Shuttleworth ex A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 15: 45. (1880) Greene: Pittonia 3: 154. (1897)
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