Sisymbrium** sect. Torularia Coss.
Annual, biennial or perennial herbs, clothed with small, simple or branched hairs. Leaves small, dissected, toothed to entire, basal leaves often rosulate, cauline sessile, amplexicaul to cuneate. Racemes lax in fruit, sometimes bracteate below. Flowers small, rarely large, white, pinkish or violaceous; pedicels short, often thickened. Sepals erect, not saccate at base. Petals up to twice as long as the sepals, rarely suppressed or rudimentary. Stamens 6; filaments not appendaged; anthers short, obtuse. Lateral nectar glands in pairs, semi-globose or ovoid, free or connate at the base; middle glands absent. Ovary linear-cylindrical, sessile, (5-)10-34-ovuled; style short or absent, often thickened with depressed, sub-bilobed stigma. Siliquae linear, sub-cylindrical or sub-terete, bilocular, dehiscent, often torulose and variously curved or carcinate above, hairy, rarely glabrous; valves rigid, 1-veined; septum membranous, not veined; seeds 1-seriate, many, small, not mucilaginous when wet; radicle incumbent.
About 15 species, mostly Asian; 6 species found in our area.
Some species of Malcolmia resemble very closely to some of its species, but short stigmas (not conical with decurrent lobes) and absence of middle nectar glands are its distinctive characters. Its differences with Arabidopsis, Microsisymbrium and Sisymbrium has already been discussed elesewhere.
