Veronica serpyllifolia |
Veronica teucrium |
|
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thyme-leaf speedwell |
large speedwell |
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Habit | Perennials. | Perennials. |
Stems | creeping to ascending, 5–40 cm, scattered eglandular hairs only, often also with glandular hairs, sometimes glabrate. |
erect, rarely ascending, (15–)30–70(–100) cm, eglandular-hairy, hairs evenly distributed around stem. |
Leaves | blade oblong-lanceolate to ovate, 8–25 × 5–13 mm, 1.5–2.5 times as long as wide, base cuneate, margins subentire or serrulate-crenate, apex rounded to short-acuminate, surfaces glabrate. |
blade ovate or oblong-ovate, rarely lanceolate, (20–)30–55(–70) × (6–)15–25(–45) mm, 2–3(–4) times as long as wide, base ± cordate, margins dentate to serrate to crenate-incised, rarely subentire, apex acute, abaxial surface hairy, adaxial glabrous. |
Racemes | 1, terminal, 50–100 mm, 10–30(–60)-flowered, axis eglandular- and glandular-hairy; bracts oblong, 4–7 mm. |
2–4(–8), axillary, 60–150 mm, 50–150-flowered, axis hairy; bracts linear-lanceolate to linear, 4–8(–14) mm. |
Pedicels | erect, 2–5 mm, 4–6 mm in fruit, shorter than subtending bract in flower, eglandular- and, sometimes, glandular-hairy. |
erect, 3–7(–14) mm, equal to subtending bract, eglandular-hairy. |
Flowers | calyx lobes 2–3 mm, apex acute, ciliate; corolla white, blue, or pink, with purple or dark blue veins (except on abaxial lobe), rotate, 5–8 mm diam.; stamens 2.5–3 mm; style 2–4 mm. |
calyx 5-lobed, abaxial lobes 3–4 mm, adaxial 1–1.5 mm, apex acute, glabrous or hairy; corolla bright blue, rarely pinkish or white, (9–)12–18 mm diam.; stamens 4.5–6 mm; style 5–6 mm. |
Capsules | compressed in cross section, obcordiform, 2.5–3.5 × 4–5.5 mm, wider than long, apex acutely emarginate, glandular-ciliate, otherwise glabrate. |
± compressed to ± round in cross section, broadly obovoid or obcordiform, (3–)4–5.5 × (2.5–)3.5–5 mm, apex not deeply, narrowly emarginate, glabrous or sparsely hairy. |
Seeds | 50–72, brown, ellipsoid, flat, 0.6–1.1 × 0.4–1 mm, 0.2 mm thick, smooth. |
(2–)8–18, brown, widely ellipsoid to widely obovoid, flat, 1.2–2.1 × 1–1.5 mm, 0.2–0.4 mm thick, smooth. |
2n | = 14. |
= 48, 64 (Europe). |
Veronica serpyllifolia |
Veronica teucrium |
|
Phenology | Flowering Apr–Aug. | Flowering May–Jul. |
Habitat | River banks, wet places, moist meadows, shady forests. | Dry meadows, forest edges, scrub, calcareous soils. |
Elevation | 0–3300 m. [0–10800 ft.] | 0–1000 m. [0–3300 ft.] |
Distribution |
AK; AL; AR; AZ; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MT; NC; ND; NH; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; TN; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; NB; NL; NS; ON; PE; QC; SK; South America; Mexico (Baja California); Eurasia; Australia
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CT; DC; IL; IN; MA; MD; ME; MI; MO; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; SD; VT; WI; NF; ON; QC; Europe [Introduced in North America] |
Discussion | Alpine plants of Veronica serpyllifolia with bright blue, larger corollas, and smaller, hairier raceme axes have been treated at various ranks under the epithet humifusa. The characters are labile and show intergradations with the typical plants. Veronica serpyllifolia is widespread; it is not clear where it is native. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Veronica teucrium has often been considered an infraspecific taxon of V. austriaca; many records of V. teucrium have been reported under the name V. austriaca. The occurrence of V. austriaca in the narrow sense in the flora area could be neither supported nor excluded; it differs from V. teucrium mainly in distal leaves of the vegetative shoot linear and entire. Related species have been introduced for horticultural reasons but apparently have not escaped. Veronica satureiifolia Poiteau & Turpin was reported from Missouri by G. Yatskievych [1999–2013; as V. scheereri (J.-P. Brandt) Holub] outside cultivation based on a single specimen and was similarly found in MIN but likely not naturalized. The name V. latifolia Linnaeus, which has at times been used for V. teucrium, is now considered ambiguous and should not be used (R. K. Brummitt 2007). Reports of V. teucrium in Saskatchewan have not been verified. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 17, p. 312. | FNA vol. 17, p. 322. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | V. humifusa, V. serpyllifolia var. decipiens, V. serpyllifolia subsp. humifusa, V. serpyllifolia var. humifusa, V. tenella | V. austriaca subsp. teucrium, V. austriaca var. teucrium |
Name authority | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 12. (1753) | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. ed. 2, 1: 16. (1762) |
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