Veronica officinalis
Sp. Pl. 1: 11. 1753.
Perennials. Stems creeping, decumbent to ascending distally, 10–40 (–50) cm, densely eglandular-hairy, rarely glabrate or glabrous. Leaves: blade ovate, ovate-oblong, or obovate, (8–) 20–35 (–50) × (3–) 10–20 (–30) mm, 1.5–2 times as long as wide, base attenuate to cuneate or obtuse, margins dentate, denticulate, or serrulate, apex obtuse to rounded, surfaces sparsely to densely eglandular-hairy, rarely glabrate. Racemes 1–4 (–8), axillary, 40–60 mm, 10–35 (–40) -flowered, axis densely to sparsely eglandular-hairy, sometimes also glandular-hairy, rarely glabrate; bracts linear-lanceolate or narrowly ovate, (1.5–) 3–4 (–5) mm. Pedicels erect, (0.5–) 1–2 (–3) mm, shorter than subtending bract, densely eglandular-hairy, rarely glandular-hairy or glabrate. Flowers: calyx 4 (or 5) -lobed, lobes 2–3.5 (–4) mm, apex obtuse, glandular and eglandular-hairy; corolla pale blue-lilac to pale-pink, rarely white with pink veins, 6–8 mm diam.; stamens 2.8–3.4 mm; style 2.5–3 (–4) mm. Capsules compressed in cross-section, triangulate-obdeltoid to obcordiform, 3–5 × 4–5 mm, apex rounded or truncate, rarely emarginate, glandular-hairy, rarely glabrous. Seeds 9–24, brown to yellow, ellipsoid, ovoid, or obovoid, flat, 0.8–1.6 × (0.3–) 0.6–1.2 mm, 0.2–0.3 mm thick, smooth. 2n = 18, 36 (Europe).
Phenology: Flowering (Apr–)Jun–Jul(–Aug).
Habitat: Forests, meadows, pastures, scrub, ruderal places.
Elevation: 0–1600 m.
Distribution
Introduced; Greenland, St. Pierre and Miquelon, B.C., N.B., Nfld. and Labr. (Nfld.), N.S., Ont., P.E.I., Que., Calif., Conn., Del., D.C., Ga., Idaho, Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., Ky., Maine, Md., Mass., Mich., Minn., Mont., N.H., N.J., N.Y., N.C., N.Dak., Ohio, Oreg., Pa., R.I., S.C., S.Dak., Tenn., Vt., Va., Wash., W.Va., Wis., Wyo., Eurasia, in s South America (Chile)
Discussion
Veronica ×tournefortii Villars [V. officinalis var. tournefortii (Villars) Dumortier] refers to the hybrid between V. officinalis and V. allionii Villars in Europe and is not applicable to any North American plant.
Selected References
None.