Cardamine concatenata

Native

Moderate moisture. Woods.

April to May

White to pink

8″ to 16″

This is an erect, perennial forb that rises from rhizomes. The rhizomes are constricted at intervals of ¾″ to 1″ resembling a string of beads.

The stems are erect and unbranched. They are hairless near the base, and are covered with short, spreading hairs above the middle. A single whorl of 3 leaves appears on the stem above the middle.

Basal leaves are on long leaf stalks and are similar to stem leaves. They are usually gone by the time the plant is in full flower. Stem leaves are stalked, up to 3″ long and across. They are deeply palmately divided into 3 narrow lobes. The two lateral lobes often have secondary lobes, giving the overall appearance of a 5 lobed leaf. The lobes are linear to lance-shaped, up to 2⅓″ long and ⅜″ wide. The margins may be shallowly or deeply toothed, or cut into narrow, irregular lobes.

The inflorescence is a loose, unbranched, elongated cluster at the end of the stem.

The flowers are ⅜″ to ¾″ long and fragrant. They have 4 narrow, white to pink petals and 6 stamens.

The fruit is a narrow, ¾″ to 1½″ long, erect, cylindrical pod.

Northeast, central, metro, southeast, southwest