Whitetop

Names and Synonyms

Common Names

• heart-pod hoarycress
• heart-pod whitetop
• hoary pepperwort
• Hoary Cress
• Thanet Cress
• heart-podded hoary cress
• hoary cardaria
• pepper cress
• perennial peppergrass
• tall whitetop
• whitetop
• Hoary-Cress
• Pepper-cress

Scientific Names

Accepted name

Synonyms

• Cardaria draba
• Lepidium draba var. longistylum
• Lepidium matritense
• Cardiolepis dentata
• Nasturtium draba
• Draba ruderalis
• Lepidium drabifolium
• Crucifera cardaria
• Cochlearia draba
• Cardaria cochlearia
• Cardaria brachypetala
• Lepidium arvense
• Lepidium draba var. matritense
• Cardaria draba var. dunense

Regional and Traditional Names

Sources: Wikidata, Catalogue of Life

Taxonomical Classification

This plant belongs to the kingdom Plantae and the phylum Streptophyta, falling under the class Equisetopsida and subclass Magnoliidae. Within the order Brassicales, it is a member of the family Brassicaceae. Finally, it is classified under the genus Lepidium.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Distribution

This plant, known as Lepidium draba, exhibits a specific distribution across the northern regions of Europe. It can be found growing within the borders of Denmark. Additionally, its presence is documented throughout the landscapes of Finland. The species also populates various areas across Great Britain and Ireland. Finally, its geographical range extends into the territories of Norway.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Botanical Identification

Ecology

The ecology of Lepidium draba is characterized by a highly adaptable distribution that spans a vast altitudinal gradient, ranging from sea level (0 m AMSL) to high-altitude environments reaching up to 2600 m AMSL. It is a versatile species capable of thriving in diverse landscapes, commonly occupying disturbed and open habitats such as crop fields and roadsides. Furthermore, it is well-suited to more natural and rugged terrains, including steppe ecosystems and stony places, where it can persist across varied topographical conditions.

Elevational range max:

2600 m AMSL

Elevational range min:

0 m AMSL

Habitat :

crop fields, roadsides, steppe, stony places

Life history

The life history of Lepidium draba is characterized by a variable lifecycle that can manifest as an annual, biennial, or perennial, allowing it to adapt to diverse environmental conditions. As a plant categorized by multiple life form classifications, it exhibits characteristics of both a hemicryptophyte and a cryptophyte, utilizing these survival strategies to endure seasonal shifts. Furthermore, the species is deciduous, shedding its foliage as part of its natural growth cycle.

Deciduousness :

deciduous

Life form :

hemicryptophyte

Life form :

cryptophyte

Lifecycle :

perennial

Morphology

The morphology of Lepidium draba is characterized by its growth form as a non-woody herb and forb. It functions as an independent organism, neither acting as a parasite nor as an epiphyte, maintaining a strictly terrestrial existence. The plant features an erect shoot orientation and is self-supporting in its structure, rather than being a climber or vine. In terms of stature, it exhibits significant variability in height, with individual plants ranging from a minimum of 0.15 m to a maximum of 1 m, resulting in an average plant height of approximately 0.34 m.

Aquatic :

terrestrial

Climber :

self-supporting

Epiphyte :

terrestrial

Growth form :

herb

Growth form :

forb

Parasite :

independent

Plant height max:

1 m

Plant height mean:

0.341666666666667 m

Plant height min:

0.15 m

Shoot orientation :

erect

Woodiness :

non-woody

Physiology

The physiology of Lepidium draba is characterized by a C3 photosynthetic pathway and a non-carnivorous nutritional strategy. The plant's foliage exhibits significant morphological variability, with leaf lengths ranging from a minimum of 4 cm to a maximum of 10 cm, maintaining a mean length of 7 cm. The leaf width demonstrates a similar range, starting at a minimum of 2 cm and reaching a maximum of 5 cm, resulting in a mean width of 1.5 cm. These dimensions contribute to a mean leaf size of 12.13 cm². Furthermore, the plant demonstrates a mean Specific Leaf Area (SLA) of 205 cm²/g, reflecting its physiological approach to resource acquisition and leaf construction.

Carnivory :

non-carnivorous

Leaf length max:

10 cm

Leaf length mean:

7 cm

Leaf length min:

4 cm

Leaf size mean:

12.13 cm²

Leaf width max:

5 cm

Leaf width mean:

1.5 cm

Leaf width min:

2 cm

Photosynthetic pathway :

C3

Specific Leaf Area (SLA) mean:

205 cm²/g

Reproduction

The reproduction of Lepidium draba is characterized by a sexual process involving bisexual flowers, with asexual reproduction being entirely absent. The flowering period typically begins in May and concludes in June. The pollination strategy is biotic, relying primarily on insects to facilitate the transfer of pollen. Following successful fertilization—noting that self-fertilization is absent—the plant develops a dehiscent fruit type specifically categorized as a capsule. These capsules are relatively small, with a mean length of 0.4375 cm (ranging from 0.3 to 0.45 cm) and a mean width of 0.4125 cm (ranging from 0.35 to 0.5 cm). The reproductive output is high, with each fruit capable of producing more than 1000 seeds. The individual seeds are uniform in length at approximately 2 mm and possess a mean mass of 0.0018250625 g, with values ranging from a minimum of 0.00143 g to a maximum of 0.00234 g. Dispersal of the seeds follows an unspecialized syndrome, though it is also noted to be anthropochorous, meaning it can be spread via human activity.

Dehiscence :

dehiscent

Dispersal syndrome :

unspecialized

Dispersal syndrome :

anthropochorous

Flowering time :

May

Flowering time :

Jun

Fruit length max:

0.45 cm

Fruit length mean:

0.4375 cm

Fruit length min:

0.3 cm

Fruit type :

capsule

Fruit width max:

0.5 cm

Fruit width mean:

0.4125 cm

Fruit width min:

0.35 cm

Pollination syndrome :

insect

Pollination syndrome :

biotic

Reproduction asexual :

absent

Reproduction sexual :

bisexual

Seed length mean:

2 mm

Seed mass max:

0.00234 g

Seed mass mean:

0.0018250625 g

Seed mass min:

0.00143 g

Seeds_per_fruit :

>1000

Self fertilization :

absent

Sources: Global Inventory of Floras and Traits (GIFT)

Chemicals

Lepidium draba has 1 reported phytochemicals identified across 0 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported chemicals include Peroxidase.

Peroxidase

1. The protein journal

Conditions

Lepidium draba has 1 reported investigations on conditions identified across 0 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported conditions include osmotic stress.

Osmotic stress

1. Protoplasma