Putnam Park Wildflowers


Flower ID: IMG_9855.JPG-10-01-2021
Flower name (scientific): Cardamine pensylvanica Muhlenberg ex Willdenow PY: 1801. Pronunciation guide: (phonetic spelling) kar-DA-mih-nee pen-sill-VAN-ee-ka
Flower name (common): Pennsylvania Bittercress
Family name (common): Mustard
Family name (scientific): Brassicaceae
Scientific name origin:
     Genus: From the Greek kárdamon, Dioscorides’ (the Greek physician, pharmacologist, and botanist) name for cress.
    Specific epithet: Of or from Pennsylvania.
Common name origin: The habitat of the type specimen was Pennsylvania and the name bittercress is associated with species in the genus Cardamine.
Flower description:
     Size: 0.1 to 0.3 inches (3 to 8 mm)
     Petal count: 4
     Color: white
     Other: flower arrangement, Raceme
Plant description:
     Size: 6 to 24 inches (15 to 61 cm)
     Stem hairy: glabrous distally, sparsely pubescent near the base
     Other:
Leaf description: attachment is basal and alternate, type is compound
     Size: Basal leaves are about 4 to 15 cm long. Stem leaves are about 4 to 8 cm long. Terminal leaflets about 1 to 3 cm long and 0.6 to 2.5 cm wide.
     Color: medium green
     Hairy: glabrous
     Other: Shape: leaf, cauline pinnately (5 or) 7 to 13 (up to 19)-foliolate, sometimes appearing pinnatisect (FNA), pinnately compound with 3 to 15 leaflets, leaflets linear, oblanceolate, obovate, or orbicular (IL)
Origin (native, introduced, invasive): Native
Status (common, uncommon, threatened, rare): Common
Bloom time (typical): April to June
Cycle (annual, biennial, perennial): Annual/Biennial
Habitat: Swamps, marshes, banks of streams and rivers, lake margins, semi-shade, wet to mesic.
Fruit: Siliques typically 17 to 27 mm in length, and ascending.
Seed: Brown colored, oblong to oval in outline, and 0.7 to 1.1 mm in length.
Importance to wildlife:
Similar species (if any): Cardamine parviflora (Small-Flowered Bitter Cress) has some resemblance to Cardamine pensylvanica. A straightforward way to differentaite these two species is to note that the terminal leaflet for C. parviflora has about the same width as the other leaflets on the same petiole, whereas the terminal leaflet for C. pensylvanica is usually distinctly broader than the other leaflets on the same petiole. C. pensylvanica prefers a wet habitat, whereas C. parviflora prefers a dry habitat. Planodes virginicum (Virginia Rock Cress) also has a resemblance, and can also be distinguished from C. pensylvanica by the shape of the terminal leaflet, which has a similar width to the other leaflets on the petiole. Planodes virginicum is a more southern species, not reported from Wisconsin, Minnesota, or Michigan.
Ethnobotany:
Latitude: 44.800223
Longitude: -91.508373
Altitude: 268.10
Distribution: In Wisconsin: (Adams, Ashland, Barron, Bayfield, Brown, Buffalo, Calumet, Chippewa, Clark, Columbia, Crawford, Dane, Dodge, Door, Douglas, Dunn, Eau Claire, Florence, Fond du Lac, Forest, Grant, Green, Green Lake, Iowa, Iron, Jackson, Jefferson, Juneau, Kenosha, Kewaunee, La Crosse, Lafayette, Langlade, Lincoln, Manitowoc, Marathon, Marinette, Marquette, Menominee, Milwaukee, Monroe, Oconto, Oneida, Outagamie, Ozaukee, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Portage, Price, Racine, Richland, Rock, Rusk, Sauk, Sawyer, Shawano, Sheboygan, St. Croix, Taylor, Trempealeau, Vernon, Vilas, Washburn, Washington, Waukesha, Waupaca, Waushara, Winnebago, Wood) Click here for distribution map
In US: (AK, AL, AR, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WA, WI, WV, WY) Click here for distribution map
In Canada: (AB, BC, LB, MB, NB, NF, NS, NT, ON, PE, QC, SK, YT) Click here for distribution map
References:
Synonym(s):
Basionym: na
Homotypic Synonym(s): POWO lists 4 homotypic synonyms for this species.
Heterotypic Synonym(s): POWO list 9 heterotypic synonyms for this species.
Autonym: na
Wetland Status (NC): FACW
Wetland Status (MW): FACW