Boechera lemmonii S. Watson
wind-blown suncress
Brassicaceae (Mustard family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
wind-blown suncress
Brassicaceae (Mustard family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Perennial herb from a branched stem-base; stems simple, several, 5-20 cm tall, glabrous to densely hairy.
Leaves:
Basal leaves lanceolate, 1.5-2 cm long, 3-6 mm wide, entire or remotely toothed, generally densely grey-hairy; stem leaves unstalked, ear-like at the bases, oblong to lanceolate, glabrous to hairy.
Flowers:
Racemes few flowered, 1-sided; petals 4-7 mm long, purple; sepals not bulging on one side at the base.
Fruits:
Siliques, horizontal, spreading, or slightly arching upward or downward, 3-4 cm long, 1-2 mm wide; seeds in 1 row, about 1.5 mm long, with very narrow wings.
Notes:
Two poorly-defined varieties occur in BC.
1. Siliques more than 2 mm wide; stems mostly more than 20 cm tall................ var. drepanoloba (Greene) Roll.
1. Siliques 2 mm or less wide; stems mostly less than 20 cm tall......................... var. lemmonii
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
Habitat and Range
Mesic meadows, fellfields, scree slopes and talus slopes in the alpine zone; infrequent (var. lemmonii) or rare (var. drepanoloba) in C and S BC; N to YT, E to AB and S to UT, NV and CA.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Arabis lemmonii S. Watson