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Perennial of the Brassicaceae family, Cardamine pentaphyllos is widespread in the mountains of Central and Southern Europe, from the Pyrenees to the Carpathians, including the Alps and northern Apennines, where it occupies cool and shaded beech groves and mixed forests, generally between 600 and 1,800 meters of altitude.
It forms modest-sized clumps, 10 to 20 cm in height, with characteristic fleshy and scaly rhizomes. The leaves are palmate, divided into five lanceolate and distinctly toothed leaflets, of a bright and fresh green, arranged in whorls on the stem, which faithfully reflects its specific epithet.
The flowers are pale lilac pink, with four well-spaced and slightly veined petals, borne on thin, erect stems in loose and airy clusters. Their soft and bright hue, combined with the cut and shiny foliage, gives the plant a particularly delicate spring character.
In its natural habitat, its flowering extends from April to June depending on the altitude. In cultivation, it generally occurs in April-May.
It requires fresh, humus-rich, and well-drained soil, in shade or partial shade, preferably in a calcareous situation. Perfectly hardy, it is suitable for woodland gardens and readily naturalizes at the foot of rocks.