Hairystem rockcress is easily confused with the pale-flowered extreme of sicklepod rockcress (Boechera sparsiflora) but can be distinguished by the diagnostic features summarized under the latter species. The two species are probably conflated in Bjornsen’s description of Arabis hirsuta in her 1946 flora:  “It is found in rocky places blooming in March and April.  The specimens we have seen have white petals and sepals, the latter with a bit of lavender color added.”