Distribution: Occurring chiefly east of the Cascades crest in Washington; British Columbia to California, east to eastern North America.

Habitat: Shrub-steppe habitat, both degraded and intact; disturbed areas, roadsides, and pastures.

Flowers: March-June

Origin: Introduced from sw Asia

Growth Duration: Annual

Conservation Status: Not of concern

Pollination: Bees, flies, butterflies, moths

Annual with stalked glands and simple hairs, the stem 1-5 dm. tall, usually with several basal, decumbent branches.

Leaves alternate, elliptic-oblong to lanceolate or oblanceolate, all but the uppermost petiolate, the blade 3-8 cm. long, deeply wavy-toothed.

Inflorescence of elongate racemes, the lower flowers from the axils of slightly reduced leaves, the main part of the raceme bractless; calyx narrowly tubular, 6-8 mm. long, the lateral sepals somewhat saccate at the base; petals 4, pale magenta, the narrow claw slightly exceeding the sepals, the spreading, oblong blades 5 mm. long; stamens 6; style none.

Siliques 3.5-4.5 cm. long, terete, spreading, curved, and ascending, strongly 1-nerved, constricted between the seeds and eventually breaking at the constrictions; upper portion of the silique sterile and forming a sharp beak 7-20 mm. long.