Template:POTD/2024-03-21
Arabis hirsuta, also known as the hairy rock-cress, is a flowering plant of the genus Arabis in the family Brassicaceae. In previous North American works, this species has been broadly defined to include plants native to Europe, Asia, and the northern half of North America, but the name is now more often used to describe a narrower subgroup. The species grows on chalk slopes, dunes, hedgebanks, walls and rocks. Arabis hirsuta grows to a height of up to around 75 centimetres (30 inches) and is usually unbranched, with a long spike of flowers and stiff hairs. The lower leaves of the plant form a rosette, while the stalkless upper leaves clasp the stem. Flowering is from June to August. It has white petals, cylindrical fruits pressed close to the stem and reddish brown seeds. This A. hirsuta plant at the start of its flowering phase was photographed in Keila, Estonia.Photograph credit: Ivar Leidus