Neotorularia torulosa (Desf.) Hedge & J. Léonard

A very variable species in hairiness, fruit size etc. It is grazed by cattle in Baluchistan.

This is a highly variable species, especially in leaf morphology and pubescence. Forms with glabrous fruit are recognized by some botanists as var. scorpiuroides, but these do not merit recognition because both glabrous and pubescent plants can be found in the same population. The species is often confused with some species of Malcolmia, but the latter genus has a conical stigma with decurrent lobes, whereas Neotorularia has a flat, entire to slightly lobed stigma with nondecurrent lobes.

Annual, 10-30 cm long herb, spreading or ascending, branched mostly from the base, usually clothed with short, branched and long, simple hairs, often ciliate on stem and fruits, rarely almost glabrous, variable. Basal leaves rosulate, linear-oblong or narrowly elliptic, shortly stalked to sessile, pinnatifid to dentate, 10-20 mm long, 4-15 mm broad; cauline leaves many, similar but becoming smaller above, sessile. Racemes (10-) 20-30 (-40) -flowered, ebracteate or sometimes with a few bracts below, up to 15 cm long in fruit. Flowers 2-3 mm across, white, sub-sessile; pedicels up to 1.5 mm long in fruit and thickened. Sepals 1.5-2 mm long. Petals (2-) 3-4 mm long, 1-1.5 mm broad. Stamens c. 1.5: 2.5 mm long; anthers c. 0.5 mm long. Siliquae linear-subcylindrical, 15-30 (-40) mm long, 1 (-1.2) mm broad, torulose, often reflexed above, spreading, usually hispid or scabrous with short, branched hairs mostly, rarely almost glabrous; stigma sessile, broad, obscurely retuse; septum somewhat rigid; seeds 15-30 in each locule, c. 1 mm long, ovoid.

Herbs annual, (1.5-)7-25(-35) cm tall, sparsely to densely covered with rigid, straight, simple trichomes to 1 mm, these mixed with much smaller, short-stalked or subsessile, forked trichomes, rarely glabrescent above. Stems usually few to several from the base, rarely simple, ascending to erect. Basal leaves rosulate; petiole 0.3-2(-4) cm; leaf blade oblong, lanceolate, or linear-oblong, (1.5-)2.5-6.5(-12) cm × (1-)3-13(-20) mm, sparsely to densely pubescent, rarely subglabrous, base attenuate, margin dentate or sinuate, rarely pinnatisect or subentire, apex acute or obtuse. Cauline leaves similar to basal leaves but progressively smaller upward, sessile to subsessile. Racemes ebracteate. Fruiting pedicels divaricate or ascending, stout, as thick as fruit, 0.3-1(-2) mm. Sepals oblong, (1-)1.5-2 × 0.4-0.8 mm, not saccate. Petals white, oblanceolate, (2.2-)2.5-3.5(-4) × (0.3-)0.5-1 mm, apex obtuse. Filaments (1-)1.5-2.5 mm; anthers ovate, 0.3-0.5 mm, apex apiculate. Ovules 14-40 per ovary. Fruit cylindric, (0.8-)1.5-2.8(-3.7) cm × 0.8-1 mm, straight, arcuate, or spirally inrolled up to 3 turns, terete, strongly torulose, glabrous or pubescent with forked and/or simple subsetose trichomes; style 0.3-1 mm; stigma entire or slightly 2-lobed. Seeds oblong, (0.6-)0.8-1.2 × 0.4-0.6 mm. Fl. and fr. Feb-Jun. 2n = 14.

Distribution: N. Africa, S.W. Asia, eastwards to Pakistan.

Xinjiang [Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan [N Africa, SW Asia, SE Europe].

Fl. Per.: March-May.

Deserts, steppe, hillsides, rocky areas; near sea level to 1500 m.

Sisymbrium torulosum Desfontaines, Fl. Atlant. 2: 84. 1798; Dichasianthus torulosus (Desfontaines) Soják; Malcolmia torulosa (Desfontaines) Boissier; Neotorularia torulosa var. scorpiuroides (Boissier) Hedge & J. Léonard; Sisymbrium rigidum Marschall von Bieberstein; S. scorpiuroides Boissier; Torularia torulosa (Desfontaines) O. E. Schulz; T. torulosa var. scorpiuroides (Boissier) O. E. Schulz.