TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL	previous taxon | next taxon Jepson Interchange (more information)
	©Copyright 1993 by the Regents of the University of California Print edition is available from the University of California Press

	The second edition of The Jepson Manual (2012) is available from the University of California Press
	See also the Jepson eFlora, which parallels the Second Edition

BRASSICACEAE

MUSTARD FAMILY

Reed C. Rollins, except as specified

Annual to subshrub
Leaves generally basal and cauline, alternate, generally simple; stipules 0
Inflorescence: generally raceme
Flower bisexual; sepals 4, free; petals (0)4, free, generally white or yellow, often clawed; stamens generally (2,4)6, generally 4 long, 2 short; ovary 1, superior, chambers generally 2, septum membranous, connecting 2 parietal placentas, style 1, stigma simple or 2-lobed
Fruit: generally capsule ("silique") with 2 deciduous valves, sometimes breaking transversely or indehiscent
Seeds 1–many per chamber
Genera in family: 300+ genera, 3000+ species: worldwide, especially cool regions; some cultivated for food (especially Brassica, Raphanus ) and ornamental
Recent taxonomic note: Recently treated to include Capparaceae [Rodman et al. 1993 Ann Missouri Bot Gard 80:686–699; Rollins 1993 Cruciferae of Continental North America. Stanford Univ Press]
Family description, key to genera by Robert A. Price.

SINAPIS

Annual, rarely per; hairs 0 or simple, reflexed or spreading
Stem erect, leafy, ± branched
Leaves: basal not rosetted, petioled, pinnately lobed or not, terminal lobe > lateral; upper cauline reduced, sessile, base tapered
Inflorescence terminal, not flat-topped, elongate in fruit; bracts 0
Flower: sepals spreading, yellowish, bases not sac-like; petals yellow to pale yellow
Fruit cylindric to angled or ± flat, hairy or not; beak prominent
Seeds 1 row per chamber, spheric; wing 0
Species in genus: 6 species: Medit, Eurasia
Etymology: (Latin: mustard, from flavor of seeds)

Introduced

S. alba L.

WHITE MUSTARD

Annual 2–6 dm; hairs ± sharp, bristle-like, rarely 0
Leaves: lower pinnately lobed, 1–2 dm, terminal lobe > lateral, coarsely dentate
Flower: petals 8–11 mm, pale yellow to whitish
Fruit 20–30 mm, narrowed between seeds or not, few-seeded
Seed pale yellow
Chromosomes: 2n=24
Ecology: Fields, orchards, disturbed areas
Elevation: < 1000 m.
Bioregional distribution: Central Coast, South Coast, expected elsewhere
Distribution outside California: native to Eurasia
Synonyms: Brassica hirta Moench

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Retrieve Jepson Interchange Index to Plant Names entry for Sinapis alba
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