SafePlants

Cardamine rupicola (Cliff Bittercress)

Cardamine, commonly known as bittercress or bitter-cress, is a large genus of flowering plants. Cardamine rupicola is specifically known as Cliff Bittercress.

Considerations for Pets

• Cardamine rupicola is a forb/herb (a non-woody plant that is not a grass) which may make it enticing to grazing pets.

Taxonomy and Nomenclature

• Scientific Name: Cardamine rupicola (O.E. Schulz) C.L. Hitchc.
• Common Name: Cliff Bittercress
• Family: Brassicaceae (Mustard Family)
• Kingdom: Plantae (Plants)
• Division: Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
• Rank: Species

Distribution and Habitat

• Cardamine rupicola is found growing on cliffs.
• Alpine Bittercress (Cardamine bellidifolia) has a circumboreal distribution and can be found in northern Maine and New Hampshire.
• Other species of Cardamine are found in shady woods and on moist limestone rocks and cliffs, especially in the west.
• Pennsylvania Bitter Cress is found in the bottom of cliffs, low ground near streams, and areas along woodland paths.

Morphological Characteristics and Growth Habits

• Cardamine rupicola is a forb/herb, which is a non-woody plant that isn't a grass.
• It is a perennial plant.

Ecological Role

• Some species of Cardamine, such as Narrowleaf Bittercress, can be invasive in certain regions, such as Minnesota. They readily self-seed and create dense mats. They invade grasslands, prairies, open and disturbed areas, and occasionally rocky cliffs and bluffs.

Related Cardamine Species

• Cardamine bellidifolia (Alpine Bittercress)
• Cardamine hirsuta
• Cardamine africana
• Cardamine amara (Large Bittercress)
• Cardamine bulbosa (Bulbous Bittercress, Spring Cress)
• Cardamine caldeirarum
• Cardamine scutata
• Cardamine flexuosa (Wavy Bittercress)
• Cardamine impatiens (Narrowleaf Bittercress)