Lepidium sativum

Lepidium sativum L., Sp. Pl. 644. 1753; Hook. f., Fl. Brit. Ind. 1: 159. 1875; Babu, Herb. Fl. Dehradun 59. 1977; Sharma & Kachroo, Fl. Jammu (Illustr.) 2: t.16. 1983; Kaur & Sharma, Fl. Sirmaur 142. 2004; Schulz in Engl. & Prantl, Pflanzenfam. ed. 5, 17 b: 408. 1936; Collett, Fl. Siml. ed. 2: 36. 1921; Fl. China @ eFloras.org 8: 29; FNA @ eFloras.org 7: 592; Fl. Pak. @ eFloras.org

Annual, 30-80 cm tall. Stem erect or ascending, branched, glabrous. Basal leaves rosulate or not, 3-10(-17) cm x 2.5-3.5(-6) cm, petiolate, petiole ca. 2 cm long, pinnatisect, pubescent; cauline leaves relatively short, pinnatisect, petiolate or sessile; uppermost leaves linear, sessile. Racemes much branched, each with 20-40 flowers, ebracteate. Flowers small, ca. 4 mm long and ca. 3.5 mm across, white; pedicels 2-3(-5) mm long in fruit, filiform, ascending or subappressed. Sepals 4, 1.5-2 mm long and 1 mm broad, oblong, obtuse, hairy outside when young. Petals 4, ca. 3 mm x 1 mm, narrowed below into claw, apex rounded or emarginate. Stamens 6, nearly equal; filaments ca. 1.8 mm long; anthers small, ca. 0.3 mm long. Ovary flat and elliptic, 2.7 mm x 2 mm, bilocular, one ovule per loculus; style short, ca. 0.7 mm long; stigma capitate. Siliculae 4.5-6 mm x 3.5-5 mm, broadly elliptic to suborbicular, glabrous, apically winged and distinctly notched at the apex with short style included within; septum 1 mm broad. Seeds 2, 3 mm x 1 mm, brown.

Flowering and Fruiting: January to March
Common Names: Garden Cress, Garden Pepper Cress, Pepper Grass, Pepperwort, Poor man's Pepper; Halon (Hindi)