Cardaria draba (hoary cress)

Cardaria draba

Photo courtesy Joseph DiTomaso

Carardia draba ((hoary cress) is a perennial herb (family Brassicaceae) found most commonly in riparian areas and marshes of the central coast of California. It is also found in the southwestern region of the state, the Sacramento Valley, and the Klamath Range, where it is very invasive. This plant quickly colonizes disturbed sites, irrigated agricultural fields, roadsides and ditches. Hoary cress reproduces by seed and vegetatively from its extensive root system. Plants may resprout from small root fragments, especially where the soil is moist. Hoary cress also spreads rapidly due to its prolific seed production, but extensive control efforts have decreased the rate of spread in recent years.

Jepson Manual, 2nd Edition: Lepidium draba

Cal-IPC Inventory rating: Moderate

Cal-IPC Resources on Cardaria draba

• California Invasive Plant Inventory Assessment Form (pdf) - Information gathered by Cal-IPC on the impacts, rate of spread, and distribution of invasive plants in California. Does not include management information.
• Species account from Invasive Plants of California's Wildlands - Includes biology and management information.
• Cal-IPC News - Articles from our quarterly newsletter. Each issue is available as a pdf. List of articles on Cardaria draba.
• Cal-IPC Symposium Proceedings - Presentations and papers from our annual Symposium. List of articles on Cardaria draba.

Cal-IPC News Articles

• (1993). California Exotic Pest Plant Council draft list exotic plants of greatest concern October 1993. CalEPPC News. 1: 6.
• Goode, S. (1998). Legendary stewardship award. CalEPPC News. 6: 10.
• Owen, K. (2004). An island called Santa Cruz: Removing invasives on the Channel Islands. Cal-IPC News. 12: 4-5,13.
• Young, J. A. and C. Turner (1995). Lepidium latifolium L. in California. CalEPPC News. 3. 3: 4-5.

Cal-IPC Symposium Proceedings

• Clines, J. (2005). Preventing weed spread via contaminated hay and straw. California Invasive Plant Council Symposium 2005. Chico, CA.
• DiTomaso, J. M. (2005). Efficacy and safety of new herbicides on the horizon. California Invasive Plant Council Symposium 2005. Chico, CA.
• Gerlach, J. D. (1997). How the west was lost: Reconstructing the invasion dynamics of yellow star-thistle and other plant invaders of western rangelands and natural areas. California Exotic Pest Plant Council Symposium '97. Concord, CA.
• Young, J. A., D. E. Palmquist, et al. (1995). Ecology and control of perennial pepperweed (Lepidium latifolium L.). California Exotic Pest Plant Council Symposium '95. J. Lovich, J. Randall and M. Kelly. Pacific Grove, CA.

Other Resources on Cardaria draba

• USDA PLANTS database - Federal database with information on identification and distribution, and links to websites in individual states.
• Jepson Online Interchange for California Flora - Information on taxonomy, biology, and distribution from the UC Berkeley Jepson Herbarium.
• CalFlora - Distribution information by county based on submitted observations and herbarium specimens.
• The Nature Conservancy Management Summary - Information compiled by TNC land managers. Photos included for some species.
• CalPhotos - Images of plants taken mostly in California.
• Natural Resource Projects Inventory - State database with information on resource management projects throughout California. Query by the species of interest.

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