You are here
Magnoliopsida
Veronica L.
EOL Text
Annual or perennial herbs. Leaves usually opposite but may be in whorls or alternate. Calyx usually with 4 lobes, the fifth when present, small. Flowers usually blue, rarely white or pinkish. Corolla with a very short tube and rotate 4-lobed limb. Stamens 2. Capsule ± laterally flattened.
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings, Flora of Zimbabwe |
Source | http://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/speciesdata/genus.php?genus_id=1286 |
Foodplant / gall
Aceria anceps causes gall of flower of Veronica
Foodplant / gall
Aphis beccabungae causes gall of leaf of Veronica
In Great Britain and/or Ireland:
Foodplant / pathogen
Armillaria mellea s.l. infects and damages Veronica
Foodplant / gall
Asterolecanium fimbriatum causes gall of stem of Veronica
Foodplant / open feeder
gregarious larva of Athalia lineolata grazes on leaf (underside) of Veronica
Plant / associate
fruitbody of Clitocybe pruinosa is associated with Veronica
Remarks: season: spring
Foodplant / gall
larva of Dasineura similis causes gall of shoot tip of Veronica
Foodplant / spot causer
acervulus of Discogloeum coelomycetous anamorph of Discogloeum veronicae causes spots on live Veronica
Foodplant / gall
larva of Gymnetron beccabungae causes gall of flower of Veronica
Foodplant / gall
larva of Gymnetron melanarium causes gall of stem of Veronica
Foodplant / gall
larva of Gymnetron veronicae causes gall of ovary of Veronica
Foodplant / gall
larva of Gymnetron villosulum causes gall of fruit of Veronica
Foodplant / gall
larva of Jaapiella veronicae causes gall of shoot tip of Veronica
Foodplant / saprobe
immersed pseudothecium of Lewia scrophulariae is saprobic on dead stem of Veronica
Foodplant / sap sucker
Nasonovia ribisnigri sucks sap of live leaf of Veronica
Plant / resting place / within
puparium of Phytomyza crassiseta may be found in leaf-mine of Veronica
Other: sole host/prey
Foodplant / gall
telium of Puccinia albulensis causes gall of leaf of Veronica
Foodplant / gall
Schroeteria delastrina causes gall of fruit of Veronica
Foodplant / gall
Sorosphaera veronicae causes gall of live stem (near ground) of Veronica
Remarks: season: 2-6
Foodplant / visitor
adult of Thecophora visits for nectar and/or pollen flower of Veronica
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | BioImages, BioImages - the Virtual Fieldguide (UK) |
Source | http://www.bioimages.org.uk/html/Veronica.htm |
Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD) Stats
Specimen Records:444
Specimens with Sequences:601
Specimens with Barcodes:338
Species:153
Species With Barcodes:152
Public Records:254
Public Species:141
Public BINs:0
Veronica is the largest genus in the flowering plant family Plantaginaceae, with about 500 species; it was formerly classified in the family Scrophulariaceae. Taxonomy for this genus is currently being reanalysed, with the genus Hebe and the related Australasian genera Derwentia, Detzneria, Chionohebe, Heliohebe, Leonohebe and Parahebe included by many botanists. Common names include speedwell, bird's eye, and gypsyweed.
The species are herbaceous annuals or perennials, and also shrubs or small trees if Hebe is included. Most of the species are from the temperate Northern Hemisphere, though with some species from the Southern Hemisphere; Hebe is mostly from New Zealand.
Contents
§Uses[edit]
§Food and medicine[edit]
Veronica americana is edible and nutritious and is reported to have a flavor similar to watercress. Native Americans used Veronica species as an expectorant tea to alleviate bronchial congestion associated with asthma and allergies. The plant can be confused with skullcap and other members of the mint family. Members of the mint family have square sided stems, and Veronica species have rounded stems.[1]
Veronica sp. herb has been used in the traditional Austrian medicine internally (as tea) for treatment of disorders of the nervous system, respiratory tract, cardiovascular system, and metabolism.[2]
§Groundcover[edit]
Several veronica species and cultivars are cultivated for use as groundcovers.[3]
§As weeds[edit]
Several species of speedwell are weeds that outcompete lawn grasses.[4] Some of the more common of these are Persian speedwell (V. persica),[5] creeping speedwell (Veronica filiformis),[6] corn speedwell (V. arvensis),[7] germander speedwell (V. chamaedrys), and ivy-leaved speedwell (V. hederifolia). It is often difficult to tell one species from another. There are five to seven species of speedwell in Michigan alone that are easily confused.[6]
The resilient speedwell species have a fine, fibrous root system and bright green roundish, oval, or heart-shaped leaves with scalloped edges. The leaves are often small, with some under 1/4 inch long, the flowers are typically also small and are blue or bluish-white in color. In all the plant species but one, the leaves are alternate near the end of flowering stems, but the leaves are opposite near the base.[8]
§Ecology[edit]
Species of Veronica are used as food plants by the larvae of some species of Lepidoptera, including the Grizzled Skipper.
§Trivia[edit]
A stylized speedwell is featured on the badge of Squadron 541 of the British Royal Air Force.[9]
In Italy they are colloquially referred to as "occhi della Madonna" (St. Mary's eyes).
§Species[edit]
§Gallery[edit]
-
Veronica agrestis (green field-speedwell)
-
Veronica americana (American brooklime)
-
Veronica austriaca (Austrian speedwell)
-
Veronica beccabunga (brooklime)
-
Veronica chamaedrys (germander speedwell)
-
Veronica gentianoides (gentian speedwell)
-
Veronica incana (silver speedwell)
-
Veronica montana (mountain speedwell)
-
Veronica officinalis (heath speedwell)
-
Veronica persica (bird's-eye)
-
Veronica serpyllifolia (thyme-leaved speedwell)
-
Veronica teucrium (large speedwell)
-
Veronica wormskjoldii (hairy speedwell)
§References[edit]
- ^ Tilford, G. L. Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West. ISBN 0-87842-359-1
- ^ Vogl S, Picker P, Mihaly-Bison J, Fakhrudin N, Atanasov AG, Heiss EH, Wawrosch C, Reznicek G, Dirsch VM, Saukel J, Kopp B. Ethnopharmacological in vitro studies on Austria's folk medicine - An unexplored lore in vitro anti-inflammatory activities of 71 Austrian traditional herbal drugs. J Ethnopharmacol.2013 Jun13. doi:pii: S0378-8741(13)00410-8. 10.1016/j.jep.2013.06.007. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID 23770053. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23770053
- ^ Klett, J. E. and R. A. Cox. Ground Cover Plants. Fact Sheet no. 7.400. Colorado State University Extension. 2009.
- ^ Corn Speedwell. TurfFiles.
- ^ Persian speedwell. Weed Gallery. U.C. Davis.
- ^ a b Creeping Speedwell. MSU Turf Weeds. Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Michigan State University.
- ^ Corn Speedwell. MSU Turf Weeds. Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Michigan State University.
- ^ Yelverton, F. Speedwell, Corn. North Carolina State University. 2007.
- ^ 541 Squadron. Royal Air Force.
- ^ Gibson, E. Rare plant in forest has botanists bamboozled. New Zealand Herald. 10 November 2009.
§External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Veronica. |
Wikispecies has information related to: Veronica |
- "Speedwell". Encyclopedia Americana. 1920.
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | Wikipedia |
Source | http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Veronica_(plant)&oldid=651280573 |