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Blue Ridge bittercress

Holmgren's bitter-cress

Habit Perennials; hirsute or pilose proximally, sparsely pubescent or glabrous distally. Perennials; glabrous throughout.
Rhizomes

swollen, compact at stem base, (fleshy, stolons many, slender, ca. 1 mm diam., pubescent or glabrous).

slender, 0.5–1 mm diam.

Stems

erect, usually unbranched, rarely branched distally, 1–2.5 dm, sparsely to densely hirsute or pilose proximally, sparsely so or glabrous distally.

erect to ascending, branched, 1.5–2 dm.

Rhizomal leaves

usually simple, rarely 3-foliolate, (3–)6–16 cm, leaflets petiolulate or subsessile;

petiole (1.5–)4–13 cm;

lateral leaflets subsessile or petiolulate (to 0.5 cm), blade similar to terminal, much smaller;

terminal leaflet (petiolule 0.5–2 cm), blade orbicular to reniform or broadly ovate, (1–)1.5–4.5 cm, base cordate, margins repand to coarsely crenate, (apiculate at vein endings, surfaces sparsely pubescent or glabrous).

Cauline leaves

2–5, 3 or 5-foliolate, petiolate, leaflets petiolulate or subsessile;

petiole 0.8–5 cm, base not auriculate;

lateral leaflets sessile or petiolulate (to 0.5 cm), blade similar to terminal, smaller;

terminal leaflet petiolulate (0.5–1.5 cm), blade broadly ovate to suborbicular, 1.5–4(–5) cm × 12–35 mm, margins repand to coarsely crenate or slightly lobed, (apiculate at vein endings, margins glabrous).

3 or 4, 3- or 5-foliolate, petiolate, leaflets petiolulate;

petiole 0.5–1.7 cm, base not auriculate;

lateral leaflet blade linear to linear-lanceolate, 0.9–1.5 cm × 1–3 mm, margins entire;

terminal leaflet (petiolule 0.3–0.5 cm), blade obovate to lanceolate (linear distally), 1.3–2.3 cm × 2–8 mm, base cuneate, margins entire or subapically 1- or 2-toothed.

Racemes

ebracteate.

ebracteate.

Flowers

sepals (ascending) oblong, 3–3.5 × 1–1.5 mm, lateral pair not saccate basally;

petals white, oblanceolate, 5–6.5(–8) × 1.5–2.5 mm, (not clawed, apex obtuse to subemarginate);

filaments: median pairs 3.5–5 mm, lateral pair 2.5–3 mm;

anthers oblong, 1.2–1.6 mm.

sepals oblong, 1.2–1.5 × 0.6–0.8 mm, lateral pair not saccate basally;

petals white, oblanceolate, 2–2.5 × 0.8–1 mm, (not clawed, apex rounded);

filaments: median pairs 1.5–1.8 mm, lateral pair 1–1.2 mm;

anthers ovate, 0.2–0.3 mm.

Fruiting pedicels

ascending to divaricate-ascending, 7–20 mm.

ascending to suberect, 5–14 mm.

Fruits

linear, 1.5–2.5 cm × 1–1.2 mm;

ovules 10–14 per ovary;

style 1.2–2.5 mm.

linear, 1–2 cm × ca. 1 mm;

ovules 16–24 per ovary;

style 0.5–0.7 mm.

Seeds

brown, oblong, 1.2–1.7 × 0.8–1.1 mm.

brown, oblong, 1.2–1.5 × 0.8–1 mm.

Rhizomal

and basal leaves absent.

Cardamine flagellifera

Cardamine holmgrenii

Phenology Flowering Mar–Jun. Flowering Jul–Aug.
Habitat Moist wooded slopes, gorges, wooded ravines, seepage places Boggy slopes
Elevation 300-1000 m (1000-3300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
GA; NC; SC; TN; WV
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
OR
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Cardamine holmgrenii is known only from the type collection, from the Blue Mountains in Baker County.

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

Source FNA vol. 7, p. 474. FNA vol. 7, p. 475.
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. clematitis, C. concatenata, C. constancei, C. cordifolia, C. digitata, C. diphylla, C. dissecta, C. douglassii, 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. 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. flagellifera var. hugeri, C. hugeri
Name authority O. E. Schulz: Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 32: 405. (1903) Al-Shehbaz: Harvard Pap. Bot. 11: 275. (2007)
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