Taxonomy
Family: Brassicaceae
Habitat
Fresh or brackish marshes, shores, streams, ditches.
Associates
Distribution
Throughout, although the variety shown here restricted mainly to the Atlantic states west to the Great Lakes.
Morphology
Erect taprooted annual or biennial to 1 m, taller plants often branches; leaves lanceolate to oblong-obovate, the lower ones pinnatifid; middle cauline leaves winged toward the base and auriculate; flowers yellow, petals 1.5-2.5 mm, about equaling the sepals; mature pedicels 3-7 mm; fruits 2.5-9 mm, subglobose to about twice as long as the pedicels;
Notes
Flowers late June to September
Wetland indicator: OBL
Three varieties occur in the Northeastern U.S. The plants shown here are var. palustris, which has glabrous leaves that are mostly pinnatifid and short-cylindric fruits 4-9 mm long not restricted near the middle.
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
Michael Hough © 2014 |