Family: Brassicaceae
Carolina whitlow-grass, common whitlow-grass
[Draba caroliniana Walter, more...]
Marcie O'Connor
Marcie O'Connor
University of Wisconsin - Madison (WIS-VP)
Etymology: Draba: from Greek drabe for "sharp" or "acrid" and referring to the burning taste of the leaves which supposedly had a medicinal value as a poultice
Plants: erect, annual, 2"-10" tall forb, stem single or branched at the base
Leaves: basal leaves rounded at the tip, narrowing toward the base, blunt, toothless, hairy; a few stem leaves mostly near the base
Flowers: white, 4-parted, 1/3" wide, petals rounded at the tip; inflorescence a dense cluster (raceme) of smooth-stalked flowers; blooms April-May
Fruits: elongated pod, erect or pointing upward on stalks usually 1/3 to 1/2 as long as the pod
Habitat: disturbed sites, prairies; in rocky, sandy soil
Conservation Status: Native
Plants: erect, annual, 2"-10" tall forb, stem single or branched at the base
Leaves: basal leaves rounded at the tip, narrowing toward the base, blunt, toothless, hairy; a few stem leaves mostly near the base
Flowers: white, 4-parted, 1/3" wide, petals rounded at the tip; inflorescence a dense cluster (raceme) of smooth-stalked flowers; blooms April-May
Fruits: elongated pod, erect or pointing upward on stalks usually 1/3 to 1/2 as long as the pod
Habitat: disturbed sites, prairies; in rocky, sandy soil
Conservation Status: Native
Rocky bluff prairies, dry sand prairies, sandstone bluffs, cedar glades, sandy fields, openings in dry oak woods, sand blows, sandy lawns and waste areas, gravel pits, rock outcrops, sandy railroad beds, thinned pine plantations. A native but weedy species, some collections no doubt representing adventive populations. Common along the Wisconsin River and in the northwestern part of the Driftless Area. Isolated stations on rock outcrops in Oconto and Waupaca Cos. are probably native. This is the species about which Aldo Leopold writes in A Sand County Almanac: “the smallest flower that blows”.
Flora of North America: Flora of North America Floristic Rating: Coefficient of Conservatism = 5 USDA Plants Database: Federal Distribution and detailed information including photos Dan Tenaglia's The Missouri Flora: Fabulous photographs; detailed descriptions; color and leave arrangement key.
Marcie O'Connor
Arthur Meeks
Hugh H. Iltis
