Brassica tournefortii

Sahara mustard

Family: Brassicaceae · Type: annual · Not Native

Conservation status: Cal-IPC Yes

Sahara mustard is a naturalized annual plant found in southwestern and desert bioregions in roadsides, washes, and open areas at elevations below 800 meters. Flowering from January to June, this plant produces yellow flowers 4 to 7 millimeters long with white or cream-colored petals. Growing with branched stems 30 to 70 centimeters tall, it develops a dense covering of stiff hairs across its stems and foliage. Its basal leaves form a persistent rosette with pinnately lobed edges, featuring 4 to 10 lateral lobe pairs that are serrate-dentate in appearance. The fruit develops as a slender, spreading to ascending pod 3 to 7 centimeters long, typically containing multiple small spherical seeds.

Habitat: Roadsides, washes, open areas

Bloom period: Jan-Jun

Elevation: < 800 m

Bioregions: SW, D

California counties: San Diego, Kern, Riverside, San Bernardino, Imperial, Los Angeles, Monterey, Orange, San Luis Obispo, Kings, San Benito, Ventura, Inyo, Santa Barbara, Yolo, Sacramento

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