Lepidium sativum |
Lepidium eastwoodiae |
|
---|---|---|
garden cress, garden cress pepperwort, garden pepper-grass, garden pepperweed, garden pepperwort, gardencress pepperweed, pepper cress |
mesa pepperwort |
|
Habit | Annuals; (often glaucous), usually glabrous, rarely sparsely pilose. | Annuals, biennials, or perennials; (base woody); glabrous or pubescent. |
Stems | simple from base, erect, branched distally, (1–)2–8(–10) dm. |
simple from base, erect, branched distally, (3.5–)4.5–16(–18) dm. |
Basal leaves | (withered by anthesis); not rosulate; petiole 1–4 cm; blade 1- or 2-pinnatifid or pinnatisect (lobes ovate to oblong), 2–8(–10) cm, margins (of lobes) entire or dentate. |
(soon deciduous), not rosulate; petiole (1–)2–5.5(–7.5) cm; blade pinnatifid, (2–)3–6.8(–9) cm × 10–30 mm, margins (of lobes) dentate to serrate. |
Cauline leaves | petiolate; blade similar to basal, usually less divided, rarely undivided, (distal) often linear, bases not auriculate, margins entire. |
shortly petiolate or sessile; blade narrowly lanceolate or oblanceolate to linear, 3–7 cm × (2.5–)4–10mm (smaller distally), base attenuate to cuneate, not auriculate, margins usually entire, rarely dentate. |
Racemes | considerably elongated in fruit; rachis glabrous. |
elongated in fruit; rachis puberulent, trichomes straight or curved. |
Flowers | sepals oblong-obovate, 1–1.8 × 0.5–0.8 mm; petals white or lavender, spatulate to obovate, 2–3.5(–4) × 0.7–1.4 mm, claw 1–1.4 mm; stamens 6; filaments (median pairs) 1.5–2 mm, (glabrous); anthers 0.4–0.5 mm. |
sepals suborbicular to oblong, 0.8–1.5 × 0.7–1.2 mm; petals white, suborbicular, 2.2–3.5(4) × 1.5–2.5 mm, claw 0.7–1.5 mm; stamens 6; filaments 1.5–2.5 mm, (glabrous); anthers 0.3–0.4 mm. |
Fruiting pedicels | suberect to ascending, appressed to rachis, straight, (terete or slightly flattened), 1.5–4(–6) × 0.4–0.6 mm, glabrous. |
divaricate-ascending to horizontal, usually slightly recurved or somewhat sigmoid, rarely straight, (not winged), (3–)3.5–7.5(–8) × 0.2–0.3 mm, puberulent adaxially. |
Fruits | broadly ovate or ovate-oblong, (4–)5–6.4(–7) × 3–4.5(–5.6) mm, apically broadly winged, apical notch 0.2 0.8 mm deep; valves thin, smooth, not veined, glabrous; style 0.1–0.5(–0.8) mm, usually included in, rarely subequaling, apical notch. |
broadly ovate, 2–3.5(–4) × 1.8–2.6(–3) mm, apically winged, apical notch 0.1–0.2mm deep; valves thin, smooth, not veined, glabrous; style (0.2–)0.3–0.6(–0.7) mm, exserted beyond apical notch. |
Seeds | (reddish brown), ovate-oblong, 2–2.7(–3) × 1–1.5 mm, (3-lobed). |
(dark brown), ovate, 1.4–1.8 × 0.8–1.1 mm. |
2n | = 16, 32. |
|
Lepidium sativum |
Lepidium eastwoodiae |
|
Phenology | Flowering Apr–Aug. | Flowering Jul–Sep. |
Habitat | Gardens, old fields, vacant lots, disturbed areas, railroad embankments, waste grounds, roadsides, cultivated areas | Pinyon-juniper, sagebrush, or mixed desert shrub communities |
Elevation | 900-2200 m (3000-7200 ft) | |
Distribution |
CT; IA; ID; MA; MD; ME; MI; NH; NY; OH; OR; PA; RI; TN; WA; WY; AB; BC; MB; NF; NS; NT; ON; PE; QC; SK; Europe; sw Asia; perhaps ne Africa [Introduced in North America; introduced also in South America (Argentina), Australia]
|
AZ; CO; NM; UT
|
Discussion | Lepidium sativum is cultivated as a salad green and is sporadically naturalized, though never as an aggressive weed. It is seldom collected; the above range may be incomplete. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
C. L. Hitchcock (1936) and R. C. Rollins (1993) reduced Lepidium eastwoodiae to a variety of L. montanum and L. alyssoides, respectively. However, the differences in morphology and flowering periods support its recognition as an independent species. We have not examined the holotype of Lepidium moabense and follow N. H. Holmgren (2005b) in reducing it to synonymy of L. eastwoodiae. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 7, p. 592. | FNA vol. 7, p. 581. |
Parent taxa | Brassicaceae > tribe Lepidieae > Lepidium | Brassicaceae > tribe Lepidieae > Lepidium |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | L. alyssoides var. eastwoodiae, L. moabense, L. montanum var. eastwoodiae | |
Name authority | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 644. (1753) | Wooton: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 25: 258. (1898) |
Web links |