Cardamine microthrix
I.Thomps.Annual, to 30 cm high, taprooted or fibrous rooted; stems erect to trailing, glabrous or occasionally sparsely hairy. Basal leaves few to many, persisting or not, to 8 cm long, simple or pinnate, the terminal pinna relatively large, broadly ovate with a strongly cordate base; cauline leaves mostly 2–5 cm long, pinnate with 1–3 pairs of lateral pinnae, terminal pinnae usually 5–9-lobed, often acutely, lateral pinnae usually trilobed, margins of pinnae almost always with several minute cilia. Racemes few–many flowered; sepals 1.5–2 mm long; petals 3–4 mm long, white; mature style slender, to 1 mm long. Fruits erect to suberect, 20–30 mm long, c. 1 mm wide; pedicels 5–10 mm long; seeds elliptic, c. 1.2 mm long. Flowers possibly all year.
VRiv, GipP, NIS, EGL, EGU, HSF, HNF. Also SA, NSW, ACT. Scattered through East Gippsland, north central and north-east Victoria, occurring near streams and lagoons.
Not often collected, this species can be distinguished from other small-flowered native species (C. papillata, C. moirensis, C. paucijuga, C. lineariloba) by the shape and degree of leaf-lobing and by the presence of several minute cilia on the pinna margins of most cauline leaves. It also tends to be more robust and have more flowers per raceme. Although in Victoria stems are glabrous or very sparsely hairy, plants from New South Wales often have more densely hairy stems. Previously included in C. paucijuga.
Thompson, I.R. (1996). Cardamine. In: Walsh, N.G.; Entwisle, T.J., Flora of Victoria Vol. 3, Dicotyledons Winteraceae to Myrtaceae, pp. 434–442. Inkata Press, Melbourne.
Spinning