''Lepidium didymum'', the lesser swine-cress, is a species of flowering plant in the family

Brassicaceae Brassicaceae () or (the older) Cruciferae () is a medium-sized and economically important family of flowering plants commonly known as the mustards, the crucifers, or the cabbage family. Most are herbaceous plants, while some are shrubs. The leav ...

Description

''Lepidium didymum'' is an annual or biennial herb with decumbent or ascending and glabrous green stems, up to long, radiating from a central position. The leaves are pinnate and alternate, and can reach a length of . It blooms between July and September. The flowers are inconspicuous, the four white petals very short or absent, with 2 (rarely 4), stamens and the fruits consist of two rounded valves, notched at the apex, with a very short style between.Gaby H. Schmelzer, Gabriella Harriet Schmelzer and Ameenah Gurib-Fakim (Editors) They are also wrinkled and contain orange or reddish brown seeds, that are 1–5 mm long.

Taxonomy

It was first described and published by the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 'Mant. Pl.' (Mantissa Plantarum) on page 92 in 1767. The specific epithet ''didymum'', refers to the Greek word δίδυμα for 'twin' or 'in pairs', referring to the seed capsule.

Distribution

''Lepidium didymum'' is of uncertain origin, but is often cited as native to South America, mainly

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

, Brazil,

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. It has been introduced elsewhere as a weed of cultivation. It has naturalised across the globe, from Africa, Europe, Asia, Australasia, North America and South America. In Britain, it had been recorded from the wild by 1778, chiefly in England and the south of Ireland, growing on cultivated and waste ground, in gardens and lawns, by paths and roadsides.

Uses

The leaves of this plant are

edible An edible item is any item that is safe for humans to eat. "Edible" is differentiated from "eatable" because it does not indicate how an item tastes, only whether it is fit to be eaten. Nonpoisonous items found in nature – such as some mushroo ...

, and have a salty, cress or mustard flavour.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q149609 didymum Plants described in 1767 Flora of South America