description Spring Cress Overview
Spring cress (Cardamine bulbosa) is a perennial wildflower in the mustard family native to eastern North America. It produces clusters of four-petaled white flowers in spring and has a rounded, tuber-like underground base reflected in its scientific name. The species inhabits wet meadows, marshes, floodplains, springs, and stream margins, where it grows in saturated or consistently moist soil.
help Spring Cress FAQ
What is the scientific name of spring cress?
Spring cress is Cardamine bulbosa, a perennial wildflower in the mustard family, Brassicaceae. It is also called bulbous bittercress because of its rounded underground base. [Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection](https://www.mass.gov/info-details/spring-cress)
Where does Cardamine bulbosa grow?
It prefers wet habitats such as floodplains, low wet woods, forest seeps, swamp hummocks, and muddy ground. The plant is native to eastern North America and is often associated with moist or seasonally flooded soils. [Florida Native Plant Society](https://flnps.org/plants/cardamine-bulbosa)
What do spring cress flowers look like?
Cardamine bulbosa produces small clusters of four-petaled white flowers in spring and sometimes into early summer. The flowers rise above the foliage, making them easier to notice in wet woodland habitats. [Florida Native Plant Society](https://flnps.org/plants/cardamine-bulbosa)
Why is Cardamine bulbosa called bulbous bittercress?
The name bulbosa refers to the rounded, tuber-like underground base that is characteristic of the plant. Bittercress refers to its relationship to the Cardamine group and the peppery or bitter quality associated with its leaves. [Flora of Pennsylvania](https://www.paenflowered.org/apgii/brassicales/brassicaceae/cardamine/cardamine-bulbosa)
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