Kernera saxatilis, (L.) Reichenb.

1. K. saxatilis (L.) Reichenb. in Moessler, Handb. ed. 2, 2: 1142 (1828).

Perennial; stems 10-30 cm, usually branched. Basal leaves petiolate, entire to deeply toothed, obovate-lanceolate to spathulate, obtuse or narrowed to the apex; cauline leaves lanceolate or ovate, narrowed to the base or sagittate and amplexicaul. Racemes many-flowered. Petals 2 4 mm, white. Silicula 2-4-5 mm, ovoid and stipitate, or ovoid-globose to ellipsoid-ovoid and sessile; valves smooth, with a more or less prominent mid-vein. Septum hyaline and slender, or spongy. 2n = 16, 32. Mountains of S. & C. Europe. Al Au Bu Cz Ga Ge Gr Hs?Hu It Ju Rm Po.

In S.E. Spain this species is represented by plants that have been distinguished as K. boissieri Reuter in Boiss. & Reuter, Pugillus 9 (1852). They have the cauline leaves narrowed to the base, and ovoid, not stipitate, silicula; they also have spathulate, obtuse radical leaves and this is the only way in which they differ constantly from the other plants of the species.

In the W. Pyrenees some plants occur that have been distinguished as K. decipiens (Willk.) Nyman , Syll. 199 (1854). They have the cauline leaves sagittate and amplexicaul at the base, and ellipsoid-obovoid, not stipitate silicula. It is doubtful whether there is any way in which they differ from the rest of the species, but they tend to have somewhat showier petals 3 -5-4 mm.

Plants which have been distinguished as K. auriculata (Lam.) Reichenb. in Moessler, Handb. ed. 2, 2: 1142 (1828), occur within the range of the species in many areas. In extreme cases they have both sagittate, amplexicaul cauline leaves and stipitate silicula, but many intermediates occur.

The status of these three variants is doubtful; further investigation is needed, especially on the plants from the Pyrenees and Spain.