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American Bittercress

Cardamine rotundifolia

Found in seeps, streambanks, swampy depressions, sand and gravel bars in creeks. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

51
Strong

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 94%

Height
Up to about 20 inches
Light
Partial shade, Full shade, Full sun
Soil moisture
Moist to standing water
Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
April to May
Fruiting season
June to July

Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves

Recorded in 21 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 2

Seeps and springs

Weymouth Woods Gum Swamp Trail seep
Groundwater seep. Shown: Gum Swamp Trail, Weymouth Woods, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Weymouth Woods Gum Swamp Trail seep, ncwetlands.org, undated. CC BY 2.0. Source record.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Watauga Falls
Named place / source context. Shown: Watauga Falls, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Watauga Falls, Illustrator/engraver not confidently attributed; reproduced in Zeigler and Grosscup, The Heart of the Alleghanies (1883), 1883. Public domain. Source record.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 138 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

3CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Cardamine

  • Anthocharis mideaFalcate Orangetip
  • Evergestis pallidataPurple-Backed Cabbageworm Moth
  • Pieris virginiensisWest Virginia White
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
12BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Cardamine

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
1Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Cardamine

  • Andrena arabis
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Cardamine

  • Lagopus lagopusWillow Ptarmigan
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Brassicaceae
Flower color
White
Fruit begins
June
Fruit ends
July

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

American Bitter Cress; Mountain Water Cress

Conservation status

Virginia rankS4
Global rankG4
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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How to check your spot

Sources