narrowleaf bittercress
(Cardamine impatiens)
This species is Introduced in the United States
Cardamine impatiens is an herbaceous plant that can be annual or biennial. It can grow to be 2 ft. (0.6 m) in height. The stem is erect and glabrous. It is somewhat shade tolerant, so it does well in forest edges or dappled sunlight. It also does well in areas that have moist soil.
Foliage
The leaves (6-20) are thin and membranous. The basal rosette of leaves are pinnately divided. Each leaf has 3-11 leaflets with rounded lobes. The leaves along the stem are also pinnately divided, with sharply toothed or lacerate leaflets. These leaves are sagittate auriculate (a pair of fleshy blunt projections turned downward) at their base, which is an important diagnostic characteristic.
Flowers
The plant blooms from May to August and its white flowers are small, being up to 0.1 in. (2.5 mm) long.
Fruit
The slender siliques (a type of fruit) ripen from May to September. They are 0.6-0.8 in. (1.5-2 cm) long and there are 10-24 seeds in each of them which shoot out from the dry fruits.
Ecological Threat
Cardamine impatiens produces many seeds per plant. It can form dense stands invading woodland habitats, and outcompete native species.
Citations
Rawlins, K.A., R.L. Winston, C.T. Bargeron, D.J. Moorhead, and R. Carroll. 2018. New Invaders of the Southeast. USDA Forest Service, Forest Health Assessment and Applied Sciences Team, Morgantown, West Virginia. FHTET-2017-05. Retrieved from http://bugwoodcloud.org/resource/pdf/FHTET-2017-05_New%20Invaders_SE.pdf
Selected Images
Maps
EDDMapS Distribution - This map is incomplete and is based only on current site and county level reports made by experts, herbaria, and literature. For more information, visit www.eddmaps.org
State Lists - This map identifies those states that have this species on their invasive species list or law.
Invasive Listing Sources
- City of Ann Arbor Michigan Parks and Recreation
- Connecticut Invasive Plant List
- Connecticut Invasive Plant Working Group
- Delaware Invasive Species Council
- Indiana Invasive Species Council - Invasive Plant List
- Invasive Plant Species of West Virginia
- Maryland Invasive Species Council - Invasive Species of Concern in Maryland
- Massachusetts Invasive Plants Advisory Group List
- Massachusetts Noxious Weeds
- Massachusetts Prohibited Plant List
- Minnesota Noxious Weeds
- National Park Service, Mid-Atlantic Exotic Plant Management Team Invasive Plant List
- New Hampshire Invasive Plant Species Watch List
- New Hampshire Invasive Species Committee. 2005. Guide to Invasive Upland Plant Species in New Hampshire. New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets and Food Plant Industry Division and New Hampshire Invasive Species Committee.
- New Invaders of the Southeast
- New Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team 2017 Invasive Species List
- New York Regulated and Prohibited Invasive Species - Prohibited
- Ontario’s Invading Species Awareness Program Tracked Species List
- Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Invasive Plants
- WeedUS - Database of Plants Invading Natural Areas in the United States
- West Virginia Native Plant Society, Flora West Virginia Project, and West Virginia Curatorial Database System, September 3, 1999
- Wisconsin Noxious Weeds
- Wisconsin's Invasive species rule – NR 40
Taxonomic Rank
| Domain: Eukarya |
| Kingdom: Plantae |
| Phylum: Magnoliophyta |
| Class: Magnoliopsida |
| Superorder: Rosanae |
| Order: Brassicales |
| Family: Brassicaceae |
| Genus: Cardamine |
| Cardamine impatiens |
References
Common Name Reference: USDA, NRCS. 2010. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA.
Scientific Name Reference: USDA, NRCS. 2010. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA.