Alyssum alyssoides (L.) L.
pale alyssum (pale madwort)
Brassicaceae (Mustard family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
pale alyssum (pale madwort)
Brassicaceae (Mustard family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Annual or biennial herb from a slender taproot; stems erect or ascending with several ascending branches near the base, 10-25 (40) cm tall, the shoots grey-hairy with starlike hairs.
Leaves:
Basal leaves lacking; stem leaves narrowly oblanceolate, entire, 5-25 mm long, grey with starlike down.
Flowers:
Inflorescene elongate; flower stalks spreading, 2-5 mm long; flowers about 3 mm in diameter; petals cream or white, linear, 3-4 mm long; sepals about 2 mm long, soft-hairy and with starlike hairs, persistent in fruit.
Fruits:
Silicles, 3-4 mm long, almost circular (oval), starlike hairy, strongly flattened near the edges but bulging in the middle, 2 seeds in each chamber; styles up to 0.5 mm long.
Illustration
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Alyssum alyssoides
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
| Site Information |
Value / Class |
||
|
Avg |
Min |
Max |
|
| Elevation
(metres) |
875 | 579 | 1480 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
38 | 4 | 90 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
205 | 89 | 330 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
2 | 0 | 5 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
C | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
38 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
PP | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
BG(2), ICH(2), IDF(16), MS(1), PP(17) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Dry roadsides and waste places in the steppe and montane zones; frequent in SC and SE BC, rare on S. Vancouver Island; introduced from Eurasia.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Alyssum calycinum L.
Clypeola alyssoides L.