Cabbage Family [Brassicaceae] |
status
flower
inner
morph
petals
stem
smell
stinks
3rd May 2016, bus stop, East Lancs Rd, Worsley, M/cr. | Photo: © RWD |
A long procumbent specimen trying to get more light. [Ignore the larger leaves, they are not of this plant]. |
14th May 2018, streets, St. Leonards on Sea, Hastings. | Photo: © RWD |
Growing in the corner twixt pavement and garden wall. This lone specimen is not performing particularly spectacularly, but you can see what it does. They grow to 60cm; this one about half that. They are either hairless or only sparsely hairy. |
28th April 2012, beach, Rhos Point, Colwyn Bay, N. Wales. | Photo: © RWD |
On a Sandy Shore not far from the sea. Alkalinic sands due to the numerous calcareous shells neutralising the acidity of the silicon dioxide (of which sand is made) |
28th April 2012, beach, Rhos Point, Colwyn Bay, N. Wales. | Photo: © RWD |
Leaves mostly in a basal rosette; none on the stems. |
28th April 2012, beach, Rhos Point, Colwyn Bay, N. Wales. | Photo: © RWD |
Sepals narrow, browning and almost stretching out as long as the petals. |
28th April 2012, beach, Rhos Point, Colwyn Bay, N. Wales. | Photo: © RWD |
Flowers yellow, at 10-15mm across they are about half the size of the paler-yellow 15-30mm of Perennial Wall-Rocket. |
28th April 2012, beach, Rhos Point, Colwyn Bay, N. Wales. | Photo: © RWD |
Flowers on shorter stalks than those of Perennial Wall-Rocket. |
28th April 2012, beach, Rhos Point, Colwyn Bay, N. Wales. | Photo: © RWD |
Petals fairly short about as wide as long (unlike those of Sea Radish which are much longer than wide). |
3rd May 2016, bus stop, East Lancs Rd, Worsley, M/cr. | Photo: © RWD |
Four stamens with cream anthers; solitary green style with yellow discoidal stigma atop. |
5th Aug 2017, a road, Hall Road, Sefton Coast. | Photo: © RWD |
Fruits all green at first, with the green style still attached at the top. |
3rd May 2016, bus stop, East Lancs Rd, Worsley, M/cr. | Photo: © RWD |
Pods browning as they mature, style staying the same green. |
3rd May 2016, bus stop, East Lancs Rd, Worsley, M/cr. | Photo: © RWD |
Pods browning and more mature taking on a definite 4-square shape. |
3rd May 2016, bus stop, East Lancs Rd, Worsley, M/cr. | Photo: © RWD |
You can see exactly how the many small seeds are arranged in the pod by the small bulges on the outside. The seeds are arranged in 2 rows. Style still green; stigma still attached and cream coloured. |
28th April 2012, beach, Rhos Point, Colwyn Bay, N. Wales. | Photo: © RWD |
Stems usually hairy (hairless on Perennial Wall-Rocket). Stalks of pods held at an upwards angle of c.45° to the main stem; pods supposedly almost parallel to the main stem... |
14th May 2018, streets, St. Leonards on Sea, Hastings. | Photo: © RWD |
The seed pods are alternate up the top part of the stem. |
14th May 2018, streets, St. Leonards on Sea, Hastings. | Photo: © RWD |
Seed pods are long, but not as long as those of Eastern Rocket. The stalk (pedicel) is shorter (about half that of the developed pod). The pod grows to between 1.5cm to 4.5cm long and points skywards. |
5th Aug 2017, a road, Hall Road, Sefton Coast. | Photo: © RWD |
Another Specimen: because the leaves do vary in shape/teeth. Stem leaves, are sparse, however. |
5th Aug 2017, a road, Hall Road, Sefton Coast. | Photo: © RWD |
Stem hairs, if present, are mostly lower down the stem. |
28th April 2012, beach, Rhos Point, Colwyn Bay, N. Wales. | Photo: © RWD |
Only slightly woody at the base (whereas the slightly taller Perennial Wall-Rocket is woody at the base). Leaves pinnately-lobed, with fairly narrow lobes. |
5th Aug 2017, a road, Hall Road, Sefton Coast. | Photo: © RWD |
Your Author can only spot one leaf on the stem, here on the upper right side. |
28th April 2012, beach, Rhos Point, Colwyn Bay, N. Wales. | Photo: © RWD |
Leaves supposedly pinnately lobed, this one errantly alternate. The leaves are <3 times longer than the width (> 3 times longer than wide on Perennial Wall-Rocket). |
28th April 2012, beach, Rhos Point, Colwyn Bay, N. Wales. | Photo: © RWD |
Leaves have a fine pimply surface at close inspection (the other specks are sand grains of various sizes) |
Some similarities to : Perennial Wall-Rocket (Diplotaxis tenuifolia), see captions for differences. Many similarities to : Isle of Man Cabbage (Coincya monensis) but the leaves on that are are shiny and the seed pods have a long narrow conical section atop. Uniquely identifiable characteristics Distinguishing Features : obnoxious smell when crushed and see captions. No relation to : Wall-rue (Asplenium ruta-muraria) [a fern with both similar common and scientific names]. Because of its obnoxious smell when crushed it has the colloquial name of Stinkweed. Unlike Perennial Wall-Rocket (Diplotaxis tenuifolia), Annual Wall-rocket is an annual rather than a perennial. An annual (sometimes a short-lived perennial) and neophyte which grows up to 60cm high on waste ground, arable land,, rocks, walls, disturbed ground and especially on sandy soils. This seems to include sandy beaches by the sea above normal high tide as long as sea shells are there to neutralise the acids in the sand.
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Diplotaxis | muralis | ⇐ Global Aspect ⇒ | Brassicaceae |
Diplotaxis (Wall-Rockets) |
Cabbage Family [Brassicaceae] |