Annual or biennial herb with a taproot mostly 10 cm - 1 m tall Stem: upright, branched, mostly under 3 mm thick, sometimes sparsely hairy below. Leaves: alternate, often pinnately divided (especially lower leaves), lance-shaped to oblong- reverse egg-shaped, thin. The middle stem leaves are generally winged toward the lobed base, looking more or less stalkless. Flowers: in loose, branched clusters (racemes). Sepals four, ascending. Petals four, yellow, 1.5 - 2.5 mm long, about as long as sepals, bases narrowed. Stamens six. Fruit: a longish, plump pod (silique), 4 - 9 mm long, twice as long as stalks, more or less round in cross-section, not constricted in the middle.
Similar species: No information at this time.
Flowering: July to September
Habitat and ecology: Typically found in mud, sand flats, and other moist areas.
Occurence in the Chicago region: native
Etymology: Rorippa possibly comes from the Latin roro, meaning "to be moist," and ripa, meaning riverbank. Palustris means "marsh-loving."