Noccaea fendleri subsp. californica

Kneeland prairie pennycress, Kneeland Prairie Pennycress

Family: Brassicaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.1 · Endangered

Kneeland prairie pennycress is a rare (CNPS 1B.1) California native perennial found in the northern California Coast Ranges on Kneeland Prairie in serpentine outcrops at elevations of 500 to 700 meters. Flowering from May to June, this plant produces delicate white flowers 6 to 8 millimeters long with petals approximately 1.6 to 2.5 millimeters wide. Growing with compact stems 9.5 to 11.5 centimeters tall, the plant forms a small, dense cluster. Its basal leaves are distinctive, spoon-shaped to obovate, 5 to 7 millimeters wide with tapered bases, while the plant bears 2 to 5 cauline leaves. The fruit is wingless, measuring 7 to 10.5 millimeters long and 2.7 to 4 millimeters wide.

Habitat: Serpentine outcrops

Bloom period: May-Jun

Elevation: 500-700 m

Bioregions: NCoRO (Kneeland Prairie).

California counties: Trinity, Mendocino, Humboldt, Siskiyou

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