Tower mustard is a tall, slim plant of the mustard family whose straight stem can stand 3 ft (1 m) or more, with long, skinny seed pods held tight against it. It grows across much of the United States and Canada and is probably native there, though its native range isn't fully settled. It was long known as Arabis glabra.
Appearance
- Appearance
- A or short-lived perennial, usually 1–3.5 ft (30–100 cm) tall and sometimes nearly 5 ft (1.5 m). The stem is mostly smooth with a waxy, bluish cast.
- Leaves
- The first year it makes a ground-level rosette of spoon-shaped leaves. Stem leaves are lance-shaped, up to 3 in (8 cm) long, with two lobes at the base that wrap around the stem.
- Flowers
- Tiny flowers, 1/8–1/4 in long, with 4 white to cream petals cluster at the top of the stalk. The petals often barely peek out past the .
- Flowering time
- May through July in Minnesota.
- Fruit
- Straight, slender pods up to about 2.5 in (6 cm) long stand upright and hug the stem. Each holds two rows of tiny seeds.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- dry fields
- roadsides
- woodland edges
- prairies
- rocky open woods
- Range
- Found across most of Canada and much of the United States: the western states, the north-central states from Missouri and Nebraska northward, and parts of the Northeast and Southeast. Some states treat it as introduced, and local counts vary (for example, it is only occasional in the northern half of Illinois and uncommon in the south).
- Preferred conditions
- Prefers full sun to part shade and dry to average soil, from loam and clay-loam to rocky or sandy ground; it also shows up in disturbed ground.
- Flowering
Flowers May–Jul
Flowers May–Jul
Name and classification
- About the name
- Long called Arabis glabra. Botanists have argued over which genus it belongs in, but major plant checklists, including Flora of North America, now use Turritis.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed
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