Lepidium virginicum L.
tall pepper-grass (Virginia pepperweed)
Brassicaceae (Mustard family)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

Photograph

© Jamie Fenneman     (Photo ID #6948)

Map

E-Flora BC Static Map

Distribution of Lepidium virginicum
Click here to view the full interactive map and legend

Species Information

General:
Annual herb from a slender taproot; stems erect, 15-60 cm tall, simple below, freely branched above, hairy to nearly glabrous.
Leaves:
Basal leaves egg-shaped, pinnately cut or merely toothed, 2-15 cm long, 0.5-5 cm wide, usually lacking at anthesis; stem leaves gradually reduced upwards, entire or rarely toothed.
Flowers:
Racemes numerous, elongate, many-flowered; flower stalks spreading, 2-6 mm long, round in cross section to somewhat flattened, glabrous to finely short-hairy; petals white, 1-3 mm long, conspicuous, as long as or slightly longer than the sepals; sepals about 1 mm long, glabrous or slightly soft-hairy.
Fruits:
Silicles, orbicular to nearly round, 2.5-4 mm long, scarcely margined, shallowly notched (to 0.2 mm), usually glabrous; beaks short, well included within the notch.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

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.

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Lepidium virginicum

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)
 913 800 1060
Slope Gradient (%)
 24 0 55

Aspect (degrees)
[0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]

 180 60 298
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR)
[0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic;
8 - hydric] 		3 2 6
Modal Nutrient Regime
Class
 C
# of field plots
 species was recorded in:
 8
Modal BEC Zone Class
 IDF

All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in

 BG(1), IDF(5), PP(2)

Habitat and Range

Mesic to dry disturbed areas and waste places in the lowland zone; infrequent in SW BC, known from S Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and the adjacent mainland; S to OK, TX, NM, AZ and CA.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

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