Alpine Penny-cress

Common Name: Alpine Penny-cress

Latin Name: Thlaspi caerulescens

Family: Brassicaceae (Cabbage family)

Alpine pennycress is part of a group of plants, called the Thlaspi genus, which can tolerate or actively accumulate heavy metals like lead, nickel or zinc from the soil. Alpine pennycress has white or purplish flowers with violet anthers and heart-shaped winged seed pods.

Its distribution in the British Isles is very localised, growing mainly on the Pennine hills. In the Yorkshire Dales National Park it may be seen in flower between April and August on bare and sparsely grassed stony places in old lead mining areas or on limestone near Malham (Malhamdale), in upper Wharfedale and on Ballowfield Local Nature Reserve (Wensleydale).

This species was formerly known as T. alpestre and T. calaminare.