hairy whitetop (Lepidium pubescens)
ODA rating: B
Description
Perennial, blooms April-October. Grows up to two feet tall. Leaves three inches long and one inch wide, often smaller. Hairs sparse. Petals white, mostly two to three and one half mm long. Pods strongly inflated, spherical to ovoid, and covered with short hairs. Hairy whitetop is difficult to distinguish from hoary cress in the vegetative state.
Impacts
Hairy whitetop is a common weed species on alkaline soils, but is not restricted to them. It forms dense patches that can completely dominate sites, restricting the growth of other species or degrading pastures. The species is not toxic to livestock but neither is it grazed. Although it is less common than L. draba, thousands of acres can still be found in Oregon.
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 Images courtesy of Weed Science Society of America. |
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Distribution in Oregon
The first documented site in Oregon was 1923 in Klamath County.
Map legend
Yellow: limited distribution
Red: abundant
Grey: not known to be present
Biological controls
No approved biological control agent is currently available.
Informational links
WeedMapper
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