Plants not scapose; sparsely to densely pubescent throughout, or, rarely, glabrescent, trichomes short-stalked or subsessile, submalpighiaceous or, rarely, 2-forked, often mixed along petioles and stem base with simple ones. Stems usually few to several from base, rarely simple, ascending or erect, rarely subdecumbent, (0.4-)0.8-2.5(-3.5) dm. Basal leaves: blade obovate, spatulate, oblanceolate, oblong, or sublinear, (0.3-)0.5-2 (-3.5) cm × 1-8(-10) mm, base attenuate or cuneate, margins entire, sinuate-dentate, or pinnatifid, apex acute or obtuse, (surfaces sparsely to densely pubescent or, rarely, glabrous). Cauline leaves: 3 or more; blade similar to basal, smaller distally, distalmost sessile or subsessile. ( Racemes bracteate proximally, very rarely throughout, elongated in fruit.) Fruiting pedicels erect, ascending, or divaricate, (2.5-)3-8(-12) mm. Flowers: sepals 2-3 × 0.8-1.2 mm, (sometimes slightly saccate basally); petals white, pink, or purple, (broadly obovate or spatulate), 3-5(-8) × (1-)1.5-2.5(-4) mm, (apex rounded); filaments 2-3(-4) mm; anthers oblong, 0.4-0.7 mm, (apex apiculate). Fruits linear, torulose or not, (mostly straight), (0.9-)1.2-2.5(-3.2) cm × 0.6-1.8(-2) mm (uniform in width); valves pubescent or, rarely, glabrescent, trichomes submalpighiaceous, rarely mixed with fewer, simple ones; septum fenestrate or not; ovules 20-44 per ovary; style 0.3-0.8(-1) mm; stigma entire or strongly 2-lobed. Seeds uniseriate, oblong, 0.6-0.9 × 0.4-0.5 mm.

Perennial from a stout caudex; stems clustered, 1-2 dm, sparsely hairy; lvs linear-oblanceolate, 1-3 cm; with a few sharp teeth near the tip or entire; ±pubescent with 2-4-pronged hairs; mature racemes 4-10 cm, with strongly ascending pedicels 3-6 mm; pet 3-4 mm; frs 10-25 נ1 mm, hairy at least when young; seeds in 1 row; 2n=28, 40, 42, 56, 64. Limestone cliffs; Willoughby Mt., Vt.; n. Mich.; widespread in boreal Amer. and Siberia.

Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.

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