Cardamine delavayi Franchet, Bull. Soc. Bot. France 33: 397. 1886. TYPE: China. Yunnan: near Mo-so-yun, Lankong, 2 Apr 1885, Delavay 1838 (holotype, P!; isotypes, P!, US!).

            Herbs, perennial, 15–45, sparsely pilose on leaves and at nodes, or glabrous throughout. Rhizomes slender and much elongated, with a few stolons and no bulbils. Stems simple at base, rarely branched above, erect, strongly flexuous; nodes well spaced, lowermost internodes to 9 cm. Rhizomal leaves simple; petiole 3–12 cm; leaf blade reniform, cordate, or suborbicular, 1.2–2.5 ´ 1.5–3 cm, palmately veined, base cordate, margin entire or obscurely 5-lobed, endings of principal veins and leaf apex mucronate; cauline leaves 2–5, trifoliolate; petiole of lowermost and middle ones 2–5 cm, not auriculate and sometimes ciliate at base; terminal leaflet broadly oblong or narrowly obovate, 0.7–2 ´ 0.7–1.5 cm, with a petiolule to 4 mm, margin entire, apex mucronate; lateral leaflets similar to terminal, slightly smaller. Uppermost cauline leaves trifoliolate; petiole 1–3.5 cm, not auriculate at base; terminal leaflet narrowly oblong or linear, sessile, 1–3 cm ´ (1–)2–4(–5) mm; lateral leaflets smaller. Racemes ebracteate, 7–15-flowered; fruiting pedicels ascending, (1–)1.2–2(–2.3) cm, straight. Sepals ovate, 2–3 ´ 1–1.5 mm, margin membranous; petals white, broadly obovate, 5–7 ´ 2.5–4 mm, apex rounded; median filament pairs 2.5–4, not flattened; lateral pair 1.5–3 mm; anthers linear-oblong, 1–1.3 mm; ovules 10–20 per ovary. Fruit linear, 2–3 cm ´ 1–1.3 mm; valves torulose, glabrous; style 2–4 mm. Seeds brown, oblong, 1.2–1.5 ´ 0.6–0.9 mm, wingless.

Habitat: Open gravel along streams, forests and clearings.

Elevation: 2100–4000 m.

Distribution: Bhutan, China (Sichuan, Yunnan).