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Brassicaceae FAMILY

Lepidium draba

Lepidium draba

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

A report says that the young leaves contain the toxin hydrogen cyanide, though does not give any more details[1]. In small quantities this substance is fairly harmless, and has even been recommended as having health benefits, but caution is suggested if you eat these leaves[PFAF].

Cultivation Details

HabitPerennial
Growth—

Lepidium draba is a moderately cold-hardy plant, being able to tolerate temperatures falling to around -20°c. Lepidium draba is a very versatile plant, though it needs a sunny position if it is to thrive. It succeds in most soils, though it favours neutral to alkaline conditions. It cn tolerate soils of high moisture content and can also grow in semi-arid conditions. It succeeds in saline soils[2].

Propagation

Seed - sow in situ in spring. There is very little need to encourage this plant, it is a rapidly spreading weed in many areas. Division in spring. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Lepidium+draba>

Pollinators

Bees, Insects, Self

References

  1. [1]Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). — Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. · Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. · 1986 · ISBN - ↩︎Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.
  2. [2]Invasive Species Compendium — http://www.cabi.org ↩︎An immense resource - in depth information on over 900 species of invasive plants (it also has information on animals, fungi etc).
  3. [3]Flora of the British Isles. — Clapham, Tutin and Warburg. · Cambridge University Press · 1962 · ISBN - ↩︎A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
  4. [4]Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. — Hedrick. U. P. · Dover Publications · 1972 · ISBN 0-486-20459-6 ↩︎Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.
  5. [5]A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. — Usher. G. · Constable · 1974 · ISBN 0094579202 ↩︎Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
  6. [6]Tanaka's Cyclopedia of Edible Plants of the World. — Tanaka. T. & Nakao S. · Keigaku Publishing; Tokyo · 1976 · ISBN - ↩︎The most comprehensive list of edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
  7. [7]Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications · 1990 · ISBN 0-9628087-0-9 ↩︎Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
  8. [8]Flora of the USSR. — Komarov. V. L. · Israel Program for Scientific Translation · 1968 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org · ISBN - ↩︎An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
  9. [9]Herbs of Greece. — Niebuhr. A. D. · Herb Society of America. · 1970 · ISBN - ↩︎A pleasant little book about Greek herbs.
  10. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎