Cardamine hirsuta L.

Hairy Bittercress; Common Bittercress

Herb

Annual

Vascular

Hairy Bittercress is an introduced herbaceous winter annual in the Mustard family (Brassicaceae). It is native to Europe. In Alabama it can be found statewide. Hairy Bittercress occurs in lawns, in fallow fields, on roadsides, and in other disturbed areas. It is a winter annual with a taproot. Plants usually germinate in the autumn and overwinter as a rosette. The basal leaves are petiolate and deeply pinnately lobed with 1-4 pairs of rounded lobes. The terminal lobe is larger than the lateral lobes and the petiole is ciliate near the base. The margins of the lobes are entire and the lobe surface is glabrous. The rosette persists through flowering. Stem leaves are similar to the basal leaves but smaller in size with elliptic or lance-elliptic lobes. Each rosette produces 1-many erect flowering stems. The stems are glabrous and have only 1-3 alternate leaves. Flowers are produced in racemes. Individual flowers are on erect pedicels. Each flower has 4 white petals. The fruit is a silique that is often appressed to the rachis.—A. Diamond

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Not Native FAC (NWPL)

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