Western Tansymustard

This is a hairy, heavily branched, mustardlike annual which is quite variable in appearance. There are several subspecies which vary from each other and individuals within a subspecies may look different depending on the climate they endure. This may be a clumping thicket or a tall, erect mustard. The plants grow 2-3 ft tall. It has highly lobed or divided leaves with pointed, toothed lobes or leaflets. At the tips of the stem branches are tiny yellow flowers that bloom in the spring. The fruit is a silique one half to two centimeters long upon a threadlike pedicel. This plant reproduces only from seed.

This tansymustard is toxic to grazing animals in large quantities due to nitrates and thiocyanates; however, it is nutritious in smaller amounts. Cattle that consume the plant experience numbing of the tongue, begin to hit their heads against hard objects, and can even lose vision. The plant is bitter and the seeds are said to taste somewhat like black mustard and were utilized as food by Native American peoples such as the Navajo. In Korea, it has been found to have been used historically as medicine since the 1950s when the plant was introduced.