Practical
Plants

Cardamine pennsylvanica

Bittercress

a biennial or perennial member of the Cardamine genus in the family Brassicaceae.

No photo available

Taxonomy and growth

Life cycle
biennial, perennial
Height
0.6 m
Fertility
Self fertile, Bees, Flies, Lepidoptera
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Bees, Flies, Lepidoptera

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Leaves - raw or cooked[10][11][3][4]. An excellent water cress substitute[2]. A slightly bitter flavour, but not disagreeable[7]. The grated raw root is used as a condiment[7].

Product or use
Condiment
Plant part
Leaves

Medicinal uses

Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

The leaves and the flowering plant are carminative and digestive[5].

Product or use
Carminative
Product or use
Digestive

Environment

Range
N. America - Newfoundland to Minnesota and Montana, south to Florida, Tennessee and Kansas.
Habitat
Usually found in moist or wet soils[3], it grows in most soils and habitats in eastern N. America[9].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
light shade
Water
high
Hardiness
Zone 5+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - sow outdoors in a seedbed in a shady position in April. Plant out in autumn or spring. Division.

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it should succeed outdoors in most parts of this country. A polymorphic species[9], it is closely related to C. parviflora[8]. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus. Prefers a moist humus rich soil in shade or semi-shade[6] but succeeds in most soils that are not dry[1].

References

  1. F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00

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  2. Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976-00-00

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  3. McPherson. A. and S. Wild Food Plants of Indiana. Indiana University Press 1977-00-00 ISBN 0-253-28925-4

    ↩1↩2

  4. Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952-00-00

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  5. Schofield. J. J. Discovering Wild Plants - Alaska, W. Canada and the Northwest.

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  6. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

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  7. Coffey. T. The History and Folklore of North American Wild Flowers. Facts on File. 1993-00-00 ISBN 0-8160-2624-6

    ↩1↩2

  8. Diggs, Jnr. G.M.; Lipscomb. B. L. & O'Kennon. R. J Illustrated Flora of North Central Texas Botanical Research Institute, Texas. 1999-00-00 http://artemis.austincollege.edu/acad/bio/gdiggs/NCTXpdf.htm

    ↩

  9. Fernald. M. L. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co. 1950-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  10. Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959-00-00

    ↩

  11. Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974-00-00 ISBN 0094579202

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