No images found for this plant ID: 14271.
Ensure images are uploaded to the Media Library and tagged with "14271" in the "plant_image_tag" taxonomy.
western tansymustard
Scientific Name: Descurainia pinnata ssp. glabra
Family: Brassicaceae
Category: Dicot
Growth: Forb/herb
Duration: Annual, Biennial
Other Names:
Descurainia pinnata: Western Tansymustard
Descurainia pinnata, commonly known as western tansymustard, is a flowering plant belonging to the mustard family.
Considerations for Pets
- The text mentions that the ground seeds of this plant were traditionally used for stomach ailments, but does not specify the quantities.
Considerations for Children
- The text mentions that the ground seeds of this plant were traditionally used for stomach ailments, but does not specify the quantities.
Taxonomy and Nomenclature
- Scientific Name: Descurainia pinnata (Walter) Britton
- Family: Brassicaceae (also known as Cruciferae), the Mustard Family
- Synonyms/Alternative Names:
- Descurainia pinnata var. intermedia
- Descurainia pinnata var. filipes
- Descurainia pinnata var. brachycarpa
- Descurainia sophia (flixweed, a related species)
Common Names
- Western tansymustard
- Tansy mustard
- Menzies' tansymustard
- Nelson's tansymustard
- Payson's tansymustard
- Green tansymustard
- Pinnate tansymustard
- Pinnate tansy mustard
- Yellow tansy mustard
- Mountain tansymustard (for related species like Descurainia incana)
Distribution and Habitat
- Native to North America.
- Widely distributed throughout the southern and western United States, up to 7000 feet in elevation.
- Common in the Rolling Plains region.
- Grows most commonly along ditches, roadsides, or on other disturbed, open sites where mineral soil has been exposed.
- Forms heavy stands on dry, sandy soils.
- Rare in New England, restricted to calcareous cliffs in New Hampshire.
- Also found outside of California, but confined to western North America.
Morphology and Growth Habits
- Generally greenish to short-grey-hairy annual.
- Has fine, star-shaped hairs.
- Foliage is usually some shade of green.
- Leaf margins are pinnately lobed or divided.
Ecology
- Consumed by mammalian herbivores, especially in the drier Western states.
- The seeds are harvested by the Pogonomyrmex salinus worker ant.
- Visited by desert marble butterflies.
- May be host to leaf miners (Agromyzidae family).
Traditional Uses
- The ground seeds were traditionally used by the Cahuilla people as a gastrointestinal aid for stomach ailments.
Further Information
- Discover Life: Provides information about the biology, natural history, ecology, identification, and distribution of Descurainia pinnata.