The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

Blue Ridge bittercress

alpine bitter-cress, few-seed bitter-cress, Idaho bittercress, little western bitter-cress, Siberian bitter-cress

Habit Perennials; hirsute or pilose proximally, sparsely pubescent or glabrous distally. Annuals or biennials; usually sparsely hirsute (at least proximally), rarely glabrous.
Rhizomes

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

absent.

Stems

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

(simple or few from base), erect to ascending, (not flexuous), unbranched or branched distally, (0.5–)0.8–3.2(–4.1) dm, usually pubescent throughout or proximally, rarely glabrous.

Basal leaves

(persistent to anthesis), rosulate, pinnately compound, 5–9(–13)-foliolate, 2–8.5(–11) cm, leaflets petiolulate or subsessile;

petiole 1–6 cm;

lateral leaflets petiolulate or subsessile, blade obovate to oblanceolate, smaller than terminal, margins entire or crenate;

terminal leaflet (petiolule 0.1–0.7 cm), blade usually orbicular to ovate, rarely oblong, 0.4–1.5(–2.3) cm × 3–10(–13) mm, base cordate to rounded, margins entire, or crenate-dentate to obscurely 3 or 5-lobed, (surfaces often hirsute, sometimes glabrous).

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).

3–8, pinnately compound, similar to basal, smaller and fewer distally, petiolate, leaflets petiolulate or subsessile;

petiole 0.5–2 cm, base not auriculate.

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, 1.3–1.8(–2) × 0.5–1 mm, lateral pair not saccate basally;

petals white, narrowly spatulate to oblanceolate, 2.5–3.5 × 0.9–1.5 mm (not clawed);

filaments: median pairs 1.7–2.5 mm, lateral pair 1.2–2 mm;

anthers ovate, 0.3–0.5 mm.

Fruiting pedicels

ascending to divaricate-ascending, 7–20 mm.

divaricate-ascending, (2–)3–9(–12) mm.

Fruits

linear, 1.5–2.5 cm × 1–1.2 mm;

ovules 10–14 per ovary;

style 1.2–2.5 mm.

linear, (torulose), (1.3–)1.6–2.8 cm × 1–1.7 mm; (valves glabrous or sparsely pubescent);

ovules 16–36(–42) per ovary;

style 0.4–1(–1.5) mm.

Seeds

brown, oblong, 1.2–1.7 × 0.8–1.1 mm.

brown, oblong, 1–1.6 × 0.8–1.2 mm.

2n

= 16.

Cardamine flagellifera

Cardamine oligosperma

Phenology Flowering Mar–Jun. Flowering Mar–Jul.
Habitat Moist wooded slopes, gorges, wooded ravines, seepage places Stream banks, shady banks, creek bottoms, lakeshores, meadows, moist areas, wooded slopes
Elevation 300-1000 m (1000-3300 ft) 50-3300 m (200-10800 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
GA; NC; SC; TN; WV
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; CO; ID; MT; NV; OR; UT; WA; WY; BC; Mexico (Baja California)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Source FNA vol. 7, p. 474. FNA vol. 7, p. 479.
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. holmgrenii, C. impatiens, C. longii, C. macrocarpa, C. maxima, C. micranthera, C. microphylla, C. nuttallii, C. nymanii, C. occidentalis, 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 C. acuminata, C. hirsuta var. acuminata, C. hirsuta var. bracteata, C. hirsuta subsp. oligosperma, C. hirsuta var. parviflora, C. oligosperma var. bracteata, C. oligosperma var. lucens, C. oligosperma var. unijuga, C. unijuga
Name authority O. E. Schulz: Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 32: 405. (1903) Nuttall: in J. Torrey and A. Gray, Fl. N. Amer. 1: 85. (1838)
Web links