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Cardamine pratensis - (image 1 of 5)

Taxonomy

Family: Brassicaceae

Habitat

Swamps, springs, wet meadows and woods.

Associates

Distribution

Circumboreal; the native var. palustris Wimm. & Graebn. occurs throughout most of Canada and extends south to NJ, OH, northern IN, and MN.

Morphology

Erect annual to biennial herb to 50 cm. Basal leaves with long petioles, pinnate compound with 3-8 rounded leaflets; lower cauline leaves similar to the basal ones; upper cauline leaves shorter with more leaflets that are oblong to linear. Flowers pinkish, showy, with 4 crowded, obovate petals.

Notes

Flowers May to June

Wetland indicator: Obligate

Edible, with a pungent taste, but rare in several states. These plants appear to be the native var. palustris, which have white flowers (although these are pale lavender?), the terminal leaflet of the basal leaves entire or nearly so, and lateral leaflets of the cauline leaves contracted to a short petiole. The Eurasian var. pratensis occurs from Newfoundland to NY and NJ, with pink flowers, the terminal leaflet of the basal leaves angularly dentate, and the lateral leaflets of the cauline leaves sessile.

References

Gleason, Henry A. and A. Cronquist. 1991. Manual of Vascular Plants of Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada. Second Ed.
The New York Botanical Garden. Bronx, NY

Peterson, L. A. 1977. A Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants: Eastern and central North America
Houghton Mifflin Company. New York, NY
 

Swink, F. and G. Wilhelm. 1994. Plants of the Chicago Region. Indiana Academy of Science.
The Morton Arboretum. Lisle, Illinois.
 

USDA, NRCS. 2002. The PLANTS Database, Version 3.5 (http://plants.usda.gov).
National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

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