Nasturtium officinale (Watercress)

8/19/04 Montana de Oro State Park, San Luis Obispo County, CA

 8/19/04 Montana de Oro State Park

8/19/04 Montana de Oro State Park 

4/27/03 Gabrielino Trail (JPL to Oakwilde), San Gabriel Mountains, Los Angeles County, CA 

8/3/03 Upper Newport Bay Ecological Reserve, Orange County, CA 

LIFE LIST NOTES:

COMMON NAME: Watercress

SPECIES: Nasturtium officinale

FAMILY: Brassicaceae (Mustard Family)

LIFE LIST DATE: 4/27/2003

LOCATION: Gabrielino Trail (JPL to Oakwilde), Lower Arroyo Seco, San Gabriel Mountains, Los Angeles County, CA 

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From Jepson eFlora:

NATIVE
Habit: Plant +- glabrous (sparsely hairy). 

Stem: erect to decumbent, branched, 1--11(20) dm. 

Leaf: 2--15(20) cm; leaflets 3--9(13), (0.4)1--4(5) cm, (0.3)0.7--2.5(4) cm wide, round to ovate, oblong, or lanceolate, dentate to entire. 

Flower: sepals 2--3.5 mm; petals 2.8--4.5(6) mm, 1.5--2.5 mm wide, white. Fruit: (0.6)1--1.8(2.5) cm, narrowed between seeds; style 0.5--1(1.5) mm; pedicels spreading, 0.5--1.7(2.4) cm. 

Seed: (28)36--60, 0.8--1.1(1.3) mm. Chromosomes: 2n=32.

Ecology: Streams, springs, marshes, lake margins, swamps; 

Elevation: < 3000 m. 

Bioregional Distribution: CA-FP, MP, n SNE, W&I, DMtns; 

Distribution Outside California: temperate worldwide. 

Flowering Time: Mar--Nov Note: Widely cultivated for edible greens. 

Synonyms: Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum (L.) Hayek