Cardamine nuttallii Greene, Bull. Calif. Acad. 2: 389. 1887. TYPE:

Cardamine gemmata Greene, Pittonia 1: 162. 1888; C. californica (Nuttall) Greene var. gemmata (Greene) O. E. Schulz, Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 32: 387. 1903; C. nuttallii var. gemmata (Greene) Rollins, Harvard Pap. Bot. 4: 45. 1993; Dentaria gemmata (Greene) T. J. Howell, Fl. Northw. Amer. 1: 49. 1897. TYPE:

Cardamine tenella var. covilleana O. E. Schulz, Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 32: 391. 1903; C. nuttallii var. covilleana (O. E. Schulz) Rollins, Harvard Pap. Bot. 4: 45. 1993. TYPE: United States, California, Siskiyou Mts., 17 Jun 1884, Thomas Howell 30 (lectotype designated by Rollins (1993b: 285), GH!).

Cardamine tenella var. dissecta O. E. Schulz, Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 32: 391. 1903; C. nuttallii var. dissecta (O. E. Schulz) Rollins, Harvard Pap. Bot. 4: 45. 1993. TYPE: United States, Washington, Klickitat Co., woods near the Columbia River, 11 Mar-20 Apr 1892, W. N. Suksdorf 1926 (lectotype designated by Rollins (1993b: 285), GH!).

Cardamine pulcherrima Greene, Erythea 1: 148. 1893; C. nuttalli var. pulcherrima (Greene) Taylor & Macbryde, Canad. J. Bot. 56: 185. 1978; Dentaria macrocarpa var. pulcherrima (Greene) B. L. Robinson in A. Gray & S. Watson, Syn. Fl. N. Amer. 1(1); 154. 1895; D. tenella var. pulcherrima (Greene) Detling, Amer. J. Bot. 23: 573. 1936. TYPE:

Cardamine quercetorum T. J. Howell, Erythea 3: 33. 1895; C. tenella var. querctoum (Howell) O. E. Schulz, Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 32: 390. 1903; D. quercetorum (T. J. Howell) Greene Pittonia 3: 123. 1896; Dentaria tenella var. quercetorum (T. J. Howell) Detling, Amer. J. Bot. 23: 573. 1936. TYPE:

Dentaria macrocarpa Nuttall in Torrey & A. Gray, Fl. N. Amer. 1: 88. 1838, not Cardamine macrocarpa Brandegee, Zoe 5: 233. 1906. TYPE:

Dentaria tenella Pursh, Fl. Amer. Sept. 2: 439. 1814; Cardamine tenella (Pursh) O. E. Schulz, Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 32: 389. 1903, not C. tenella E. D. Clarke, Travels 2(1): 117. 1812; C. pulcherrima var. tenella (Pursh) C. L. Hitchcock, Univ. Wash. Publ. Biol. 17(2); 472. 1964. TYPE:

Dentaria tenella var. palmata Detling, Amer. J. Bot. 23: 573. 1936. TYPE: United States, California, Plumas Co., 1877, Mrs. R. M. Austin s.n. (holotype, GH!).

Herbs, perennial, glabrous or sparsely pubescent. Rhizomes slender, producing fleshy, ovoid to oblong or cylindrical nodal swellings 2–5 mm in diam.; stolons absent. Stems 0.5–2(–3) dm, erect, simple, glabrous or sparsely pubescent distally. Rhizomal leaves simple or 3(or 5)-foliolate, (3–)4–20(–25) cm; petiole (2–)3–18(–21) cm; terminal leaflet or blade of simple leaf reniform to suborbicular or ovate to oblong, (0.9–)1.3–4(–5.2) × (0.8–)1.2–5(–7) cm, when compound subsessile or with a petiolule 0.2–3 cm, base cordate to obtuse, margin crenate, dentate, or 5–7-lobed, with apiculae terminating the teeth or lobes, glabrous; lateral leaflets (when present) or smaller than terminal leaflet, petiolulate to subsessile, margin same as terminal leaflet; cauline leaves 1–3, 3(or 5)-foliotate; petiole (0.2–)0.5–2(–3) cm, base not auriculate; terminal lobe broadly ovate to oblong or linear, (0.5–)1–3.5(–6) cm, petiolulate or sessile and leaves appearing palmate; lateral leaflets similar to terminal one but smaller, sessile, margin entire or dentate, rarely lobed. Racemes ebracteate; fruiting pedicels ascending to divaricate, 1–3.5 cm. Sepals oblong, 3.5–5 × 1.5–2 mm, erect, base of lateral pair saccate; petals purple to pale pink, rarely white, obovate, 10–15 × 4–7.5 mm, not clawed, apex rounded; median filament pairs 5–8 mm, lateral pair 3.5–5 mm; anthers oblong, 1.5–2 mm. Fruit linear, 2.5–5.6 cm × 2–2.3 mm; valves glabrous; style 4–8 mm; ovules and seeds 8–16 per fruit. Seeds dark brown, oblong, 2–2.5 × 1.4–1.6 mm.

Flowering Mar–May.

Habitat: open pine forests, damp woods, shaded bottomlands, mossy slopes, streamsides, shaded and moist hillsides.

Eleavation: 150–1000 m.

Distribution: Canada (British Columbia), United States (California, Oregon, Washington).