Sisymbrium irio

London rocket

Family: Brassicaceae · Type: perennial · Not Native

Conservation status: Cal-IPC Yes

London rocket is a naturalized annual found in the Great Valley, central Coast, southern Coast Ranges, southwestern California, White and Inyo Mountains, and desert regions in disturbed areas, fields, and pastures at elevations below 1,700 meters. Flowering from January to April, this plant produces yellow flowers 2.5 to 3.5 millimeters long with delicate petals. Growing with erect stems 20 to 60 centimeters tall, it has a smooth or slightly hairy base. Its basal leaves are pinnately lobed with 2 to 6 lateral lobe pairs, ranging from 3 to 12 centimeters long and varying from entire to slightly dentate. The fruit is a long, slender linear pod 3 to 4 centimeters in length that overtops the flowers.

Habitat: Disturbed areas, fields, pastures

Bloom period: Jan-Apr

Elevation: < 1700 m

Bioregions: GV, CCo, SCoR, SW, W&ampI, D

California counties: Los Angeles, Kern, Riverside, San Bernardino, Inyo, Ventura, Alameda, Imperial, Orange, San Diego, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, Tulare, Fresno, Mono, Santa Barbara, Kings, Glenn, Santa Clara, San Joaquin, Monterey, Santa Cruz, Yolo, Merced, Sacramento, Stanislaus, Butte, San Benito, Colusa, Sutter, Mariposa

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