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Heller's Draba

alpine whitlow-grass, golden alpine Draba, golden Draba, great alpine whitlow-grass, Mt. Lassen Draba, Mt. Lassen Draba whitlow-grass, Mt. Lassen whitlow-grass

Habit Biennials or perennials; (short-lived); caudex simple or branched; not scapose. Perennials; (short-lived); caudex simple or branched (poorly developed, with persistent dry leaves); not scapose.
Stems

branched, (0.1–)1.5–4.3(–5.1) dm, hirsute throughout, trichomes simple, 0.4–1.3(–1.8) mm, with short-stalked to subsessile, 3–5-rayed ones, 0.2–0.4 mm, (some slightly coarser, 2-rayed).

unbranched or branched, 0.3–1.5 dm, hirsute throughout, trichomes simple and long-stalked, 2–4-rayed, 0.2–1.5 mm.

Basal leaves

rosulate;

petiolate;

petiole base ciliate or not;

blade oblanceolate to obovate, 0.9–4.1(–5.2) cm × 2–7(–10) mm, margins entire or dentate, surfaces pubescent, abaxially with stalked, cruciform, and fewer 3–5-rayed trichomes, 0.1–0.6 mm, adaxially with cruciform and simple trichomes, 0.4–1.3 mm, and smaller 2-rayed ones.

(forming dense clusters); rosulate;

sessile;

blade oblanceolate to linear, (0.7–)1–2.5(–3.2) cm × 2–3.5(–5) mm, margins entire, (ciliate, trichomes simple and 2-rayed, 0.5–1.5 mm), surfaces densely hirsute, abaxially with stalked, 3–5-rayed trichomes, 0.1–0.5 mm, adaxially with simple and long-stalked, 2-rayed trichomes, to 1 mm, with smaller, 3–5-rayed ones.

Cauline leaves

(8–)12–31(–43);

sessile;

blade ovate to lanceolate or oblong, margins usually dentate, rarely subentire, surfaces pubescent as basal.

5–33;

sessile;

blade oblong to linear, margins entire, surfaces pubescent as basal.

Racemes

10–52(–83)-flowered, usually ebracteate, rarely proximalmost 1 or 2 flowers bracteate, elongated in fruit;

rachis not flexuous, pubescent as stem.

12–83-flowered, ebracteate or proximalmost 1–9 flowers bracteate, slightly or not elongated in fruit;

rachis not flexuous, hirsute as stem.

Flowers

sepals oblong, 2.5–4 mm, pubescent, (trichomes simple and stalked, 2-rayed);

petals yellow, oblanceolate, 5–7 × 1.5–2.2 mm;

anthers oblong, 0.5–0.8 mm.

sepals ovate, 2.5–4 mm, glabrous;

petals bright yellow, linear to linear-oblanceolate, 4–6 × 0.5–1(–1.2) mm;

anthers narrowly oblong, 0.8–1 mm.

Fruiting pedicels

horizontal to divaricate-ascending, straight or slightly curved upward, 4–10(–13) mm, pubescent as rachis abaxially, glabrous adaxially.

horizontal to divaricate, usually straight, rarely curved upward, (3–)5–12(–19) mm, hirsute as stem.

Fruits

(not appressed to rachis), lanceolate to ovate or oblong-lanceolate, slightly to strongly twisted or plane, flattened, 5–15 × 2–3.5 mm;

valves puberulent, trichomes simple and subsessile, 2(–4)-rayed, 0.03–0.25(–0.8) mm;

ovules 14–28 per ovary;

style (1–)1.5–3.5 mm.

oblong or, rarely, oblong-ovate, plane, flattened, (6–)9–14(–16) × 3–5 mm;

valves pubescent, trichomes stalked, 2–4-rayed, 0.07–0.5 mm;

ovules 10–20 per ovary;

style (0.6–)1–1.6(–2) mm.

Seeds

oblong, 1–1.3 × 0.6–0.8 mm.

oblong, 1.4–1.9 × 0.8–1.1 mm.

2n

= 18.

= 20.

Draba helleriana

Draba aureola

Phenology Flowering Jun–Sep. Flowering Jul–Aug.
Habitat Oak and pine-fir woodlands, aspen groves, rocky meadows Open conifer forests, alpine meadows and moraines, talus slopes
Elevation 2100-3600 m (6900-11800 ft) 2200-3200 m (7200-10500 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AZ; CO; NM; Mexico (Nuevo León)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; OR; WA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Draba helleriana is highly variable and was divided by C. L. Hitchcock (1941) into four varieties. For a discussion of those and the circumscription of the species, see I. A. Al-Shehbaz and M. D. Windham (2007).

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

Draba aureola is known from Lassen, Shasta, and Siskiyou counties in California, Deschutes County in Oregon, and Lewis and Pierce counties in Washington.

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

Source FNA vol. 7, p. 311. FNA vol. 7, p. 295.
Parent taxa Brassicaceae > tribe Arabideae > Draba Brassicaceae > tribe Arabideae > Draba
Sibling taxa
D. abajoensis, D. albertina, D. aleutica, D. alpina, D. aprica, D. arabisans, D. arctica, D. arctogena, D. argyrea, D. arida, D. asprella, D. asterophora, D. aurea, D. aureola, D. bifurcata, D. borealis, D. brachycarpa, D. brachystylis, D. breweri, D. burkei, D. californica, D. cana, D. carnosula, D. chamissonis, D. cinerea, D. corrugata, D. corymbosa, D. crassa, D. crassifolia, D. cruciata, D. cuneifolia, D. cusickii, D. cyclomorpha, D. daviesiae, D. densifolia, D. exunguiculata, D. fladnizensis, D. glabella, D. globosa, D. graminea, D. grandis, D. grayana, D. heilii, D. hitchcockii, D. howellii, D. incana, D. incerta, D. incrassata, D. inexpectata, D. jaegeri, D. juvenilis, D. kassii, D. kluanei, D. lactea, D. lemmonii, D. lonchocarpa, D. longisquamosa, D. macounii, D. maguirei, D. malpighiacea, D. micropetala, D. mogollonica, D. monoensis, D. mulliganii, D. murrayi, D. nemorosa, D. nivalis, D. norvegica, D. novolympica, D. oblongata, D. ogilviensis, D. oligosperma, D. oreibata, D. oxycarpa, D. palanderiana, D. pauciflora, D. paucifructa, D. paysonii, D. pectinipila, D. pedicellata, D. pennellii, D. petrophila, D. pilosa, D. platycarpa, D. porsildii, D. praealta, D. pterosperma, D. ramosissima, D. ramulosa, D. rectifructa, D. reptans, D. ruaxes, D. santaquinensis, D. saxosa, D. scotteri, D. serpentina, D. sharsmithii, D. sibirica, D. sierrae, D. simmonsii, D. smithii, D. sobolifera, D. spectabilis, D. sphaerocarpa, D. sphaeroides, D. standleyi, D. stenoloba, D. stenopetala, D. streptobrachia, D. streptocarpa, D. subalpina, D. subcapitata, D. subumbellata, D. trichocarpa, D. ventosa, D. verna, D. viridis, D. weberi, D. yukonensis, D. zionensis
D. abajoensis, D. albertina, D. aleutica, D. alpina, D. aprica, D. arabisans, D. arctica, D. arctogena, D. argyrea, D. arida, D. asprella, D. asterophora, D. aurea, D. bifurcata, D. borealis, D. brachycarpa, D. brachystylis, D. breweri, D. burkei, D. californica, D. cana, D. carnosula, D. chamissonis, D. cinerea, D. corrugata, D. corymbosa, D. crassa, D. crassifolia, D. cruciata, D. cuneifolia, D. cusickii, D. cyclomorpha, D. daviesiae, D. densifolia, D. exunguiculata, D. fladnizensis, D. glabella, D. globosa, D. graminea, D. grandis, D. grayana, D. heilii, D. helleriana, D. hitchcockii, D. howellii, D. incana, D. incerta, D. incrassata, D. inexpectata, D. jaegeri, D. juvenilis, D. kassii, D. kluanei, D. lactea, D. lemmonii, D. lonchocarpa, D. longisquamosa, D. macounii, D. maguirei, D. malpighiacea, D. micropetala, D. mogollonica, D. monoensis, D. mulliganii, D. murrayi, D. nemorosa, D. nivalis, D. norvegica, D. novolympica, D. oblongata, D. ogilviensis, D. oligosperma, D. oreibata, D. oxycarpa, D. palanderiana, D. pauciflora, D. paucifructa, D. paysonii, D. pectinipila, D. pedicellata, D. pennellii, D. petrophila, D. pilosa, D. platycarpa, D. porsildii, D. praealta, D. pterosperma, D. ramosissima, D. ramulosa, D. rectifructa, D. reptans, D. ruaxes, D. santaquinensis, D. saxosa, D. scotteri, D. serpentina, D. sharsmithii, D. sibirica, D. sierrae, D. simmonsii, D. smithii, D. sobolifera, D. spectabilis, D. sphaerocarpa, D. sphaeroides, D. standleyi, D. stenoloba, D. stenopetala, D. streptobrachia, D. streptocarpa, D. subalpina, D. subcapitata, D. subumbellata, D. trichocarpa, D. ventosa, D. verna, D. viridis, D. weberi, D. yukonensis, D. zionensis
Synonyms D. aurea var. tylosa, D. helleriana var. leiocarpa, D. helleriana var. neomexicana, D. helleriana var. patens, D. helleriana var. pinetorum, D. neomexicana, D. neomexicana var. robusta, D. pallida, D. patens, D. pinetorum, D. stylosa D. aureola var. paniculata
Name authority Greene: Pittonia 4: 17. (1899) S. Watson: in W. H. Brewer et al., Bot. California 2: 430. (1880)
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