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

spreading bladderpod

strong bladderpod

Habit Annuals or biennials; (delicate, wiry); with a fine taproot; pubescent, trichomes (sessile or subsessile), 4–7-rayed, rays distinct, usually furcate, occasionally bifurcate, (smooth to somewhat tuberculate). Perennials; caudex branched, (thickened); densely pubescent, trichomes (sessile), several-rayed, rays furcate or bifurcate, usually fused toward base, (strongly tuberculate).
Stems

simple to several from base, erect, often outer decumbent, (unbranched or branched distally), 1–7 dm.

several from base, erect or outer decumbent, (unbranched), to 2 dm.

Basal leaves

blade oblanceolate to elliptic, 1.5–8(–11.5) cm, margins lyrate-pinnatifid to dentate or repand, (abaxial surface densely pubescent, adaxial sparsely pubescent).

blade elliptic to lanceolate or obovate, 3–8 cm, margins entire.

Cauline leaves

(proximal petiolate, distal sessile);

blade oblanceolate to oblong, 1–7 cm, margins dentate to repand.

(proximal shortly petiolate or sessile, distal sessile);

blade elliptic or obovate, to 2 cm, margins entire.

Racemes

loose, (elongated).

dense.

Flowers

sepals elliptic or broadly ovate, 3–6.5(–8) mm, (median pair slightly thickened apically, cucullate);

petals (yellow to orange), broadly obovate, 6–11 mm, (narrowing gradually to short claw).

sepals narrowly elliptic or oblong, 4.5–5.3 mm, (tapering to the somewhat thickened, cucullate apex, lateral pair subsaccate);

petals (bright yellow), lingulate or broadly obovate, 7.5–8.5 mm, (narrowing to broad claw, joining in an arch, margins lacerate).

Fruiting pedicels

(usually divaricate-spreading, sometimes horizontal or shallowly recurved, straight or slightly curved), (7–)10–20(–25) mm, (slender or stout).

(divaricate-ascending to horizontal, straight to loosely curved), to 15 mm.

Fruits

(stipitate or subsessile, gynophore 1–2 mm), globose, subglobose, obpyriform, or obovoid, not or slightly inflated, 3–9 mm;

valves (not retaining seeds after dehiscence), glabrous throughout or sparsely pubescent inside;

replum as wide as or wider than fruit;

ovules 8–20(–28) per ovary;

style 2–4.5 mm.

(sessile or substipitate), suborbicular to broadly ovate or ellipsoid, slightly compressed, 6–8 mm;

valves pubescent;

ovules 12–22 per ovary;

style 2–3 mm.

Seeds

slightly flattened.

flattened.

2n

= 10.

Physaria gracilis

Physaria valida

Phenology Flowering Apr–May.
Habitat Limestone soils, steep slopes, roadcuts, open woods
Elevation 1900-2200 m (6200-7200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; IA; IL; KS; LA; MO; MS; OK; TN; TX
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
NM; TX
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).

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

Physaria valida is known from the Sacramento and White mountains of south central New Mexico, and southward through the Guadalupe Mountains to Hudspeth County, Texas.

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

Key
1. Stems to 7 dm; cauline leaves: blade margins usually deeply dentate, rarely repand; fruits ± sessile, globose or subglobose, 3-6 mm, bases rounded.
subsp. gracilis
1. Stems usually less than 3 dm; cauline leaves: blade margins frequently repand, occasionally dentate; fruits stipitate (gynophore slender), obpyriform to narrowly obovoid, (5-)6-9 mm, bases truncate.
subsp. nuttallii
Source FNA vol. 7, p. 641. FNA vol. 7, p. 664.
Parent taxa Brassicaceae > tribe Physarieae > Physaria Brassicaceae > tribe Physarieae > Physaria
Sibling taxa
P. acutifolia, P. alpestris, P. alpina, P. angustifolia, P. arctica, P. arenosa, P. argyraea, P. arizonica, P. aurea, P. bellii, P. brassicoides, P. calcicola, P. calderi, P. carinata, P. chambersii, P. cinerea, P. condensata, P. congesta, P. cordiformis, P. curvipes, P. densiflora, P. didymocarpa, P. dornii, P. douglasii, P. eburniflora, P. engelmannii, P. eriocarpa, P. fendleri, P. filiformis, P. floribunda, P. fremontii, P. garrettii, P. geyeri, P. globosa, P. gooddingii, P. gordonii, P. grahamii, P. hemiphysaria, P. hitchcockii, P. humilis, P. integrifolia, P. intermedia, P. kingii, P. klausii, P. lata, P. lepidota, P. lesicii, P. lindheimeri, P. ludoviciana, P. macrocarpa, P. mcvaughiana, P. montana, P. multiceps, P. navajoensis, P. nelsonii, P. newberryi, P. obcordata, P. obdeltata, P. occidentalis, P. oregona, P. ovalifolia, P. pachyphylla, P. pallida, P. parviflora, P. parvula, P. pendula, P. pinetorum, P. prostrata, P. pruinosa, P. pulvinata, P. purpurea, P. pycnantha, P. rectipes, P. recurvata, P. reediana, P. rollinsii, P. saximontana, P. scrotiformis, P. sessilis, P. spatulata, P. subumbellata, P. tenella, P. thamnophila, P. tumulosa, P. valida, P. vicina, P. vitulifera
P. acutifolia, P. alpestris, P. alpina, P. angustifolia, P. arctica, P. arenosa, P. argyraea, P. arizonica, P. aurea, P. bellii, P. brassicoides, P. calcicola, P. calderi, P. carinata, P. chambersii, P. cinerea, P. condensata, P. congesta, P. cordiformis, P. curvipes, P. densiflora, P. didymocarpa, P. dornii, P. douglasii, P. eburniflora, P. engelmannii, P. eriocarpa, P. fendleri, P. filiformis, P. floribunda, P. fremontii, P. garrettii, P. geyeri, P. globosa, P. gooddingii, P. gordonii, P. gracilis, P. grahamii, P. hemiphysaria, P. hitchcockii, P. humilis, P. integrifolia, P. intermedia, P. kingii, P. klausii, P. lata, P. lepidota, P. lesicii, P. lindheimeri, P. ludoviciana, P. macrocarpa, P. mcvaughiana, P. montana, P. multiceps, P. navajoensis, P. nelsonii, P. newberryi, P. obcordata, P. obdeltata, P. occidentalis, P. oregona, P. ovalifolia, P. pachyphylla, P. pallida, P. parviflora, P. parvula, P. pendula, P. pinetorum, P. prostrata, P. pruinosa, P. pulvinata, P. purpurea, P. pycnantha, P. rectipes, P. recurvata, P. reediana, P. rollinsii, P. saximontana, P. scrotiformis, P. sessilis, P. spatulata, P. subumbellata, P. tenella, P. thamnophila, P. tumulosa, P. vicina, P. vitulifera
Subordinate taxa
P. gracilis subsp. gracilis, P. gracilis subsp. nuttallii
Synonyms Vesicaria gracilis, Alyssum gracile, Lesquerella gracilis Lesquerella valida, Lesquerella lepidota
Name authority (Hooker) O’Kane & Al-Shehbaz: Novon 12: 323. (2002) (Greene) O’Kane & Al-Shehbaz: Novon 12: 328. (2002)
Web links