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Heart-podded Hoary Cress

Lepidium draba

Heart-podded Hoary Cress is a little plant with pretty white flowers. It grows in many places and can spread quickly, making it a common sight in fields and gardens.

Habitat: Grasslands

Appearance

The Heart-podded Hoary Cress has distinctive greyish-green leaves and clusters of tiny, four-petaled white flowers. Its most unique feature is the abundance of flattened, heart-shaped or roundish seed pods that develop after blooming, covering the plant in a silvery-green shimmer.

KingdomPlantaePhylumTracheophytaClassMagnoliopsidaOrderBrassicalesFamilyBrassicaceaeGenusLepidium
Heart-podded Hoary Cress
flowering trait badgebiennial trait badgeagricultural trait badgegrassland trait badge
Heart-podded Hoary Cress

Category

Plants

Rarity

Common

Danger

1/5 · Very low

Snaps

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Interesting facts

Even though it's a weed, its young leaves are sometimes eaten in salads or cooked.

Its tiny white flowers grow in dense, puffy clusters, looking like fluffy clouds!

The unique heart-shaped seed pods make this plant easy to identify in fields.

This super tough plant thrives along roadsides and disturbed land!

Special abilities

Ability

Root Resilience

Heart-podded Hoary Cress can grow deep taproots and widespread rhizomes that help it survive drought and spread rapidly.

Ability

Seed Shower

Heart-podded Hoary Cress produces thousands of seeds, ensuring many new plants can grow and spread to new places.

Ability

Patch Power

Heart-podded Hoary Cress can form dense patches, helping it outcompete other plants for vital sunlight and nutrients.

Measurements & details

Height
20-60 cm
Spread
30-100 cm
Flower Size
0.2-0.4 cm
Bloom Season
Spring to early Summer
Edible
Yes
Toxicity
Mild
Lifecycle
Perennial
Pollination Method
Insect

Ecological connections

pollinates

Honey bee

Apis mellifera

Gathers nectar and pollen from flowers

eaten by

Small Cabbage White

Pieris rapae

Larvae feed on the leaves

eaten by

Domestic sheep

Ovis aries

Graze on its foliage in pastures

Traits

Also known as

No aliases listed yet.

Collections

Safety

Danger

1/5 · Very low

Do not eat any plants you find without asking an adult first.

Frequently Asked Questions

How tall is Heart-podded Hoary Cress?

20-60 cm

How wide does Heart-podded Hoary Cress spread?

30-100 cm

How big are the flowers on Heart-podded Hoary Cress?

0.2-0.4 cm

When does Heart-podded Hoary Cress bloom?

Spring to early Summer

Is Heart-podded Hoary Cress edible?

Yes

Is Heart-podded Hoary Cress toxic?

Mild

What is Heart-podded Hoary Cress's lifecycle?

Perennial

How is Heart-podded Hoary Cress pollinated?

Insect

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