Draba verna
Spring draba
(c) Douglas Goldman, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · licence
Family: Brassicaceae · Type: Herb · Not Native
Draba verna (Spring draba) is a non-native California herb in the Brassicaceae family, recognized by annual habit, deeply 2-lobed white petals, glabrous fruits.
Spring draba is a naturalized annual found in California's Foothill and Mountain Provinces in open or disturbed areas at elevations below 2,500 meters. Flowering from February to May, this plant produces small white flowers with deeply two-lobed petals 2 to 4.5 millimeters long. Growing 5 to 20 centimeters tall with an unbranched stem, it develops primarily basal leaves 2 to 18 millimeters long that are obovate to oblanceolate with simple hairs. Its leaves are distinctively entire or have 1 to 5 teeth, with a mix of simple and two- to four-rayed hairs covering the leaf surfaces. The fruit is an obovate to oblanceolate pod 4 to 9 millimeters long, containing 32 to 70 tiny ovoid seeds.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 23 sympatric species; key features are annual habit, deeply 2-lobed white petals, glabrous fruits
Habitat and range
Habitat: Open or disturbed areas
Elevation: < 2500 m
California counties: Nevada, Kern, Alameda, Fresno, Humboldt, Lake, Mariposa, Mendocino, Modoc, Monterey, Riverside, San Diego, Santa Clara, Trinity, Butte, Los Angeles, Napa, Siskiyou, El Dorado, Shasta, Ventura, San Bernardino, Plumas, Tuolumne, Tulare, San Luis Obispo, Amador, Yolo, Calaveras, Madera, Sierra, Glenn, Marin, Stanislaus, Lassen, Sonoma, Tehama, Contra Costa, Placer, Alpine, Del Norte, San Benito, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Colusa
Outside California: North America, native to Eurasia, northern Africa
Bloom period
Draba verna blooms Feb-May.
How to tell it apart
vs Physaria: Draba has flattened pods; Physaria has inflated balloon-like pods.; vs Lepidium: Draba has flattened pods with 10+ seeds; Lepidium has flat round pods with 2 seeds per chamber.; vs Boechera: Draba pods short and broad; Boechera pods long and narrow like pencils.
Frequently asked questions
Is Draba verna native to California?
No. Draba verna is not native to California (recorded as not native).
When does Draba verna bloom?
Draba verna blooms Feb-May.
Where in California does Draba verna grow?
Draba verna occurs in Nevada, Kern, Alameda, Fresno, Humboldt, Lake, Mariposa, Mendocino and other counties, at elevations of < 2500 m.
What plant family does Draba verna belong to?
Draba verna is in the Brassicaceae family, genus Draba.
What habitat does Draba verna grow in?
Draba verna grows in Open or disturbed areas.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
- Draba albertina — Alaska whitlow grass
- Draba asterophora — Lake tahoe draba
- Draba asterophora var. asterophora — Tahoe draba
- Draba asterophora var. macrocarpa — Cup Lake draba
- Draba aureola — Golden alpine draba
- Draba breweri — Brewer's draba
- Eruca sp. — Garden-rocket
- Eruca vesicaria subsp. sativa
- Erucastrum gallicum — Common dogmustard
- Erucastrum sp.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.