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Lemmon's jewelflower, Lemmon's wild cabbage

San Diego jewelflower, San Diego wild cabbage, slender pod jewelflower

Habit Annuals; hispid basally, subglabrate or glabrous distally. Annuals; hispid basally, glabrous or subglabrate distally.
Stems

erect or ascending, usually branched distally, 1–8 dm, sparsely hispid basally.

erect, usually branched distally, 2.5–12 dm, hispid.

Basal leaves

rosulate;

petiole 0.3–3 cm;

blade oblanceolate, 0.7–9 cm × 4–25 mm, margins coarsely dentate-sinuate.

weakly rosulate;

petiole 0.3–3 cm;

blade linear-oblanceolate to linear-oblong, 0.7–7 cm × 2–18 mm, margins coarsely dentate or pinnately lobed.

Cauline leaves

(median) sessile;

blade lanceolate to narrowly ovate, 0.5–11 cm × 2–45 mm, (smaller distally, base amplexicaul), margins entire or denticulate.

(median) sessile;

blade linear-lanceolate, 5–16 cm × 5–40 mm, (smaller distally, base amplexicaul to sagittate), margins dentate or (distalmost) entire.

Racemes

(densely flowered), with a terminal cluster of sterile flowers.

(densely flowered), without a terminal cluster of sterile flowers.

Flowers

sepals erect to ascending, (dark purple in bud, becoming greenish or creamy white and purplish or brown distally), ovate to narrowly lanceolate, 6–17 × 2.5–3.5 mm (subequal, keeled, usually glabrous, rarely pubescent, trichomes simple);

petals white (with dark purple veins), 8–20 mm, blade 4–8 × 1.5–2 mm, crisped, claw oblanceolate, 4–11 × 2–3 mm;

filaments in 3 unequal pairs, (median pairs often connate), abaxial pair 3.5–11mm, lateral pair 2–7 mm, adaxial pair 5–12 mm;

anthers oblong to linear-oblong, unequal, 1.5–4 mm, (adaxial pair smaller).

sepals erect (purple or yellow to creamy white), lanceolate, 3–8 × 1–1.8 mm (equal);

petals purple or yellowish (often with darker purple veins), 5–15 mm, blade 2–6 × 1–1.5 mm, not crisped, claw narrowly oblanceolate or oblong, 3–9 × 1–1.5 mm;

filaments tetradynamous, median pairs 3–6 mm, lateral pair 2–5 mm;

anthers oblong, equal, 1–3 mm.

Fruiting pedicels

ascending to divaricate, 3–18(–27) mm, pubescent or glabrous.

reflexed, 2–8 mm, glabrous or hispid.

Fruits

erect or ascending (often straight), terete or slightly latiseptate, 5–12 cm × 2.5–3.5 mm;

valves each with prominent midvein basally;

ovules 52–72 per ovary;

style 0–4 mm;

stigma strongly 2-lobed (lobes 1–4 mm, opposite valves).

reflexed (often straight, rarely curved), latiseptate or 4-angled, 4.5–10 cm × 1–1.5 mm;

valves each with prominent midvein;

ovules 56–82 per ovary;

style 0.5–3.5mm;

stigma slightly 2-lobed.

Seeds

2–3.5 × 1.7–2.2 mm.

1.2–2 × 0.9–1.4 mm.

2n

= 28.

= 28.

Caulanthus lemmonii

Caulanthus heterophyllus

Phenology Flowering (Feb-)Mar–May. Flowering Mar–May.
Habitat Grassland, chaparral, scrub Coastal scrub, chaparral, rocky areas
Elevation 100-1100 m (300-3600 ft) 0-1400 m (0-4600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; Mexico (Baja California)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Of conservation concern.

Both R. C. Rollins (1993) and R. E. Buck (1995) treated Caulanthus lemmonii as a variety of C. coulteri, whereas E. B. Payson (1923) treated the two as independent species. The differences between them clearly justify their separate recognition. In fact, those differences are far greater than those that distinguish the minor color form “barbarae” that both Rollins and Buck recognized as a distinct variety of C. amplexicaulis. The types of both C. coulteri and C. lemmonii are quite distinct. The slight intergradation between the two taxa, especially in occurrence of branched trichomes and lobing of cotyledons, most likely resulted from hybridization, but that needs to be verified experimentally and molecularly.

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

Caulanthus heterophyllus is a common species distributed from Santa Barbara County southward into northwestern Baja California, Mexico.

R. E. Buck (1993) divided the species into two varieties, including one invalidly published, based on flower color, but these are treated here as mere color variants.

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

Source FNA vol. 7, p. 684. FNA vol. 7, p. 682.
Parent taxa Brassicaceae > tribe Thelypodieae > Caulanthus Brassicaceae > tribe Thelypodieae > Caulanthus
Sibling taxa
C. amplexicaulis, C. anceps, C. barnebyi, C. californicus, C. cooperi, C. coulteri, C. crassicaulis, C. flavescens, C. glaucus, C. hallii, C. heterophyllus, C. inflatus, C. lasiophyllus, C. major, C. pilosus, C. simulans
C. amplexicaulis, C. anceps, C. barnebyi, C. californicus, C. cooperi, C. coulteri, C. crassicaulis, C. flavescens, C. glaucus, C. hallii, C. inflatus, C. lasiophyllus, C. lemmonii, C. major, C. pilosus, C. simulans
Synonyms C. coulteri var. lemmonii, Streptanthus coulteri var. lemmonii, Streptanthus parryi Streptanthus heterophyllus, C. stenocarpus, Guillenia heterophylla, Streptanthus repandus
Name authority S. Watson: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 23: 261. (1888) (Nuttall) Payson: Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 9: 298. (1923)
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