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White rust survey
Looking for and collecting plants infected by the white rust around the world.
Sinapis arvensis - Field Mustard
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- Growing form: Annual herb.
- Height: 20–60 cm (8–25 in.). Stem upper part branched, bristly, hairy–almost glabrous, sometimes violet.
- Flower: Corolla regular (actinomorphic), pale yellow, approx. 1.5 cm (0.6 in.) across; petals four, 9–13 mm (0.36–0.52 in.) long.; sepals 4, spreading, easily dropping; stamens 6, of which 4 long and 2 short; gynoecium fused, a single carpel and inflorescence is an elongating raceme in fruiting stage.
- Leaves: Alternate, lowest stalked, upper stalkless. Blade bright green, rough, lowest large toothed–lobed, upper lanceolate, with toothed margin.
- Fruit: Many-seeded, round, glabrous (sometimes sparsely stiff-haired), 3–7-veined, 3–4 cm (1.2–1.6 in.) long, ascending oblique, spreading pod, terminated by a straight, bristly, 10–15 mm (0.4–0.6 in.) long, seedless beak. Pod-stalk 3–5 mm (0.12–0.2 in.). Seeds are black.
- Habitat: Fields, fallow land, roadsides, railway yards, wasteland, heaps of earth, rubbish tips, gardens and lawns.
- Flowering time: June–September.
© Agathe Jouet, PhD student, The Sainsbury Lab, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7UH, UK.
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