Teesdalia coronopifolia

Lesser shepherds cress

Family: Brassicaceae · Type: perennial · Not Native

Lesser shepherds cress is a naturalized perennial found in southern North Coast Ranges (Sonoma County) in wet, disturbed areas at elevations below 500 meters. Flowering from February to April, this plant produces white flowers about 1.5 millimeters long. Growing as a slender plant 10 to 28 centimeters tall, it emerges with one to many stems from its base, which remain simple and relatively unbranched. Its basal leaves are lanceolate, pinnately lobed or divided, typically 0.5 to 3 centimeters long, with sparse cauline leaves that are linear and sometimes dentate. The plant is characterized by its glabrous or sparsely hairy texture, with small fruits approximately 3 to 3.5 millimeters wide.

Habitat: Uncommon. Wet, disturbed areas

Bloom period: Feb-Apr

Elevation: < 500 m

Bioregions: s NCoRO (Sonoma Co.)

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