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little western bittercress
Cardamine oligosperma
Cardamine oligosperma is a species of cardamine known by the common name little western bittercress. It is native to western North America from Alaska to California to Colorado, where it grows in moist mountain habitats.
From the article Cardamine oligosperma on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Description
C. oligosperma is an annual or biennial herb growing from a taproot. It produces one or more upright, branching stems 8–50 centimeters (3–18 inches). The leaves are divided into many leaflets. The plant generally has a large basal rosette and smaller leaves further up the stem, each with 5–9 nearly round leaflets. Most prominently blooming in early spring and early autumn, the inflorescence is several centimeters long and bears many flowers with white petals just a few millimeters in length. The fruit is a silique (pod) up to 2.5 cm (1 in) long, containing 15–22 seeds.
Range & habitat
It is native to western North America from Alaska to California to Colorado, where it grows in moist mountain habitats.
Wikipedia: “Distribution and habitat”
At the table
The leaves are edible raw and other tender parts of the plant can be cooked, though have also been eaten raw.
Wikipedia: “Uses”
Toxicity
The plant often throws its seeds when touched, which can cause irritation if they contact the eyes. Younger, more succulent plants are less likely to be carrying seeds.
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Cardamine oligosperma in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 52981.