Boechera pygmaea

Tulare county rockcress, Tulare County Rockcress

Family: Brassicaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 4.3

Tulare county rockcress is a rare (CNPS 4.3) California native perennial found in southern Sierra Nevada Mountains in Tulare County on barren gravel flats at elevations of 2,100 to 3,400 meters. Flowering from May to July, this plant produces small white flowers 3 to 5 millimeters long with delicate white petals. Growing with compact stems 2 to 8 centimeters tall, it emerges from a woody caudex with crowded leaf bases close to the ground surface. Its basal leaves are narrow, approximately 0.8 to 1.5 millimeters wide, with short-stalked branched hairs covering the surface. The plant produces erect fruits 1.3 to 3.3 centimeters long that are generally glabrous and contain 8 to 12 seeds.

Habitat: Barren gravel flats

Bloom period: May-Jul

Elevation: 2100-3400 m

Bioregions: s SNH (Tulare Co.).

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.