Arabis glabra (L.) Bernh. var. glabra
Turritis glabra L.
Arabis glabra (L.) Bernh.
Tower mustard, tower rockcress
The aptly named tower mustard is a widespread North American native plant.
Plants: I first noticed these in the late summer—tall, rigid clusters of dead sticks, apparently lacking flowers or seeds or leaves. Tower mustard begins with a rosette of gray leaves, and in the second year, it produces a flowering stalk up to about 3½′ (1 m) high.
Leaves: Alternate, clasping, nondescript leaves occur along the stalk, which may branch at the top into slender shoots.
Flowers: Small, four-petaled, cream-colored flowers, each about ¼″ (6.3 mm) in size, cover some of the shoots.
Fruits: The shoots are siliques, narrow, rounded seedpods that look more like stems than seedpods.
Habitats: Sand, gravel, black soil, or clay prairies, rocky open woodlands, barren savannas, limestone glades, rocky bluffs, and abandoned fields.
Online References:
Arabis glabra (L.) Bernh. var. furcatipilis M. Hopkins
Arabis glabra (L.) Bernh. var. glabra
Turritis glabra L.
Arabis glabra (L.) Bernh. var. glabra
Turritis glabra L.
5/25/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 9″ (15 × 23 cm) 
5/19/2016 · Bemis Road Trails, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 9 × 10″ (22 × 25 cm) 
8/4/2009 · Near Nashoba Hospital, Ayer, Massachusetts · ≈ 1½ × 2½′ (53 × 80 cm) 
8/6/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Massachusetts 
7/11/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, near NH Line, Dunstable, Massachusetts 
5/25/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts · ≈ 9 × 20″ (23 × 51 cm) 
8/6/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 8 × 12″ (20 × 31 cm) 
7/21/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts · ≈ 3½ × 5″ (9.2 × 13 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Rosidae | Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more |
| Order | Brassicales | Mustard, cabbage, caper, papaya, nasturtiums, many others; most produce mustard oil |
| Family | Brassicaceae | Mustards, cabbages |
| Genus | Arabis | Greek for “mustard” or “cress” |
| Species | glabra | Smooth or hairless |
Arabis glabra description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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