AMERICAN SPEEDWELL

Veronica peregrina

Plantain Family [Plantaginaceae]

month8mar month8march month8apr month8april month8may month8jun month8june month8jul month8july

status
statusZneophyte		 flower
flower8white		 inner
inner8azure		 morph
morph8zygo		 petals
petalsZ4		 type
typeZspiked		 stem
stem8round		 sex
sexZbisexual

16th March 2011, Ireland. Photo: © Paula O'Meara
It is an annual plant with erect and sturdy stems growing up to 25cm long.


16th March 2011, Ireland. Photo: © Paula O'Meara
The leaves are narrowly long to oblanceolate, and varying between entire (meaning without teeth) to having crenate (meaning half-round) teeth near the ends of the leaves. At the top the leaves are stalkless attaching directly to the stem whilst lower down the plant they are on short stalks.

The flowers are usually white but may have a pinkish cast. Those here seem to have 3 faint stripes on the topmost (longest) petal.



16th March 2011, Ireland. Photo: © Paula O'Meara
The flower corolla is small at just 2 to 3mm across and is whitish with pale blue stripes. The flowers have 4 petals with the topmost the largest and the bottom one the narrowest and shortest, as usual for Speedwells. As can be seen here the stem, if it is hairy at all, has extremely short hairs, but a variant with glandular hairs has been spotted once in North Hants.


16th March 2011, Ireland. Photo: © Paula O'Meara
[The two leaves which are pointed at the ends and very fine teeth near top-right seem to be of a differing plant]. The leaves of American Speedwell are bluntish at the ends, emerge directly from the stem with very short stalks directly beneath a round stem bearing 4 sepals (2 smaller than the other pair - as is usual for Speedwells) with the flower in the centre.


16th March 2011, Ireland. Photo: © Paula O'Meara
The flowers have two anthers and a central style, as usual for Speedwells. All leaves feel smooth to the touch.

The fruits, of which your Author cannot spot any in these specimens, are pale fawn in colour, without hairs (or may have very fine hairs along the edges of the fruits). They are flattish and in a cardioidal shape with a very short style between them which stop much shorter than the tops of each pair.

  Veronica peregrina  ⇐ Global Aspect ⇒ Plantaginaceae  

Distribution
family8Plantain family8Plantaginaceae
 BSBI maps
genus8Veronica
Veronica
(Speedwells)

AMERICAN SPEEDWELL

Veronica peregrina

Plantain Family [Plantaginaceae]