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

fine-leaf tansy-mustard, fixweed, flixweed, flixweed tansymustard, herb sophia, not much flower, tansy mustard

California tansymustard, Sierra tansy mustard

Habit Annuals; eglandular; sparsely to densely pubescent, sometimes glabrous distally, trichomes dendritic. Annuals or biennials; eglandular; usually pubescent, trichomes dendritic, sometimes glabrous distally.
Stems

erect, unbranched or branched distally, (1–)2–7(–10) dm.

erect, unbranched basally, branched distally, (1.3–)2–10.5(–13.5) dm.

Basal leaves

petiole 0.1–2(–3) cm;

blade 2- or 3-pinnate, ovate or oblong to obovate in outline, to 15 cm, lateral lobes linear or oblong, (to 10 × 2 mm), margins entire.

petiole 0.4–4.2 cm;

blade pinnate, oblanceolate to obovate in outline, 1.5–6 cm, lateral lobes [2–4 (or 5) pairs], lanceolate, (5–22 × 1–5 mm), margins usually entire or crenate to incised, rarely lobed.

Cauline leaves

sessile or shortly petiolate;

blade smaller distally, distal lobes often narrower, surfaces often glabrous.

sessile or shortly petiolate;

blade smaller distally, distal lobes often narrower, surfaces sparsely pubescent.

Racemes

considerably elongated in fruit.

considerably elongated in fruit.

Flowers

sepals erect to ascending, yellowish, oblong, 1.8–2.8 mm, glabrate to sparsely pubescent;

petals narrowly oblanceolate, 2–3 × 0.4–0.6 mm;

median filaments 2–3 mm;

anthers 0.3–0.4 mm.

sepals spreading, yellowish, oblong, 0.9–1.5 mm, glabrous;

petals oblanceolate, 1.1–1.8 × 0.4–0.6 mm;

median filaments 0.8–1.4 mm;

anthers 0.3–0.4 mm.

Fruiting pedicels

divaricate to ascending, straight, (5–)8–15(–20) mm.

divaricate to ascending or suberect, often straight, 3–9(–11) mm.

Fruits

divaricate-ascending to erect, narrowly linear, torulose, (12–)15–27(–30) × 0.5–0.8(–1) mm, (straight or curved upward);

valves each with distinct midvein;

septum with a broad central longitudinal band appearing as 2 or 3 veins;

ovules 20–48 per ovary;

style obsolete, 0.05–0.2 mm, glabrous.

divaricate to erect, fusiform, not torulose, (2–)3–5(–6) × (0.8–)1–1.3 mm, (long-acute at both ends);

valves each with obscure midvein;

septum not veined;

ovules 4–12 per ovary;

style (0.2–)0.3–0.6(–0.8) mm, glabrous.

Seeds

uniseriate, reddish brown, oblong, 0.7–1.3 × 0.3–0.6 mm.

uniseriate, light brown, ellipsoid, 1–1.4 × 0.6–0.8 mm.

2n

= 28.

= 14.

Descurainia sophia

Descurainia californica

Phenology Flowering Mar–Jul. Flowering Jun–Aug.
Habitat Roadsides, waste places, disturbed sites, railroad embankments, hillsides, mountain slopes, canyon bottoms, stream banks, fields, lawns, pastures, deserts, sagebrush and pinyon-juniper communities Disturbed areas in pinyon-juniper, dry hillsides, decomposed granite slopes, sagebrush, moist roadsides, open woods, fir-spruce or aspen communities, gravel and talus slopes
Elevation 0-3000 m (0-9800 ft) 1700-3400 m (5600-11200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; AR; AZ; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; ME; MI; MN; MO; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NM; NV; NY; OK; OR; PA; RI; SD; TN; TX; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; NT; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT; Eurasia [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Mexico, Central America, South America, South Africa, Australia]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AZ; CA; CO; NM; NV; OR; UT; WY
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Deviant chromosome counts (e.g., 2n = 12, 14, 20, 38; see R. C. Rollins 1993, N. H. Holmgren 2005b, S. I. Warwick and I. A. Al-Shehbaz 2006) are most certainly erroneous, and the species appears to be exclusively tetraploid based on x = 7.

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

Source FNA vol. 7, p. 528. FNA vol. 7, p. 521.
Parent taxa Brassicaceae > tribe Descurainieae > Descurainia Brassicaceae > tribe Descurainieae > Descurainia
Sibling taxa
D. adenophora, D. brevisiliqua, D. californica, D. incana, D. incisa, D. kenheilii, D. longepedicellata, D. nelsonii, D. obtusa, D. paradisa, D. pinnata, D. sophioides, D. torulosa
D. adenophora, D. brevisiliqua, D. incana, D. incisa, D. kenheilii, D. longepedicellata, D. nelsonii, D. obtusa, D. paradisa, D. pinnata, D. sophia, D. sophioides, D. torulosa
Synonyms Sisymbrium sophia, Hesperis sophia, Sisymbrium parviflorum, Sophia parviflora Smelowskia californica, Sisymbrium californicum, Sophia leptostylis
Name authority (Linnaeus) Webb ex Prantl: in H. G. A. Engler and K. Prantl, Nat. Pflanzenfam. 55(III,2): 192. (1891) (A. Gray) O. E. Schulz: in H. G. A. Engler, Pflanzenr. 86[IV,105]: 330. (1924)
Web links