VERONICA 



VERONICA (after St. Veronica). Scrophulariacem. 

 Speedwell. The Speedwells are mostly herbs, with a 

 few exotic shrubs, best known by their usually long ra- 

 cemes of small blue flowers. About 200 species, mostly 

 in the northern hemisphere, a few species in the tropics 

 and southern hemisphere. In New Zealand they are a 

 dominant feature of the country. Plants in cultivation 

 are mostly hardy at the North, usually low-growing and 

 occasionally prostrate. Lvs. opposite, rarely verticillate 

 or alternate: fls. in axillary or terminal racemes and 

 bracted; calyx 4-5-parted; corolla usually blue, rarely 

 pink or white, wheel-shaped or salver-shaped, the 

 lateral lobes or the lowermost one commonly narrower 

 than the others; stamens 2, exserted, one on each side 

 of the upper lobe of the corolla; style entire, subcapi- 

 tate: capsule flattened, obtuse or notched at apex, 2- 

 f urrowed : seeds few or many. 



All are showy, free-flowering plants, used, except the 

 shrubs, as garden perennials or annuals, and are propa- 

 gated by seeds, the perennials also by division, the 

 shrubs by cuttings in spring or summer. They succeed 

 in any good garden soil in a sunny situation. The 

 lower-growing forms are good rock-plants; the taller are 

 adapted to the herbaceous border. The shrubby forms 

 are greenhouse plants or grown only in warmer parts of 

 the country, particularly California, where they are 

 everblooming, and where they do well along the coast 

 even in exposed places by the sea. The shrubby species 

 are mostly natives of New Zealand. They are well re- 

 viewed in The Garden 45, p. 50G, and 28, p. 292. Some 

 of them have enjoyed a considerable popularity in Eng- 

 land, where they are generally seen in cool conserva- 

 tories, but they survive the winters outdoors in the 

 most favored parts of the British Isles. The first hy- 

 brid was raised in 1848 by Isaac Anderson-Henry (then 

 Isaac Anderson), a noted hybridizer. This gentleman 

 continued his experiments for several years, using V. 

 speciosa, salicifolia and elliptica. His work was con- 

 tinued by others, and most of the hybrid Veronicas of 

 to-day have the parentage above indicated, with the 

 blood of V. speciosa generally much in evidence. If a 

 collective name for Veronica hybrids is desired, V. spe- 

 ciosa var. hybrida is the best name for the whole group. 

 Unfortunately all these hybrids are unfit for general 

 cultivation out-of-doors in northern climes, but a hardier 

 race will probably be secured by using V. Traversii and 

 its allies, which have been introduced more recently. 

 Some of these are V. Colensoi, Rakaiensis, anomala, 

 monticola and pimeloidcs,— all unknown to the Ameri- 

 can trade. A third and still hardier group of the New 

 Zealand Speedwells is the truly alpine group known as 

 Whipcord Veronicas. These should be quite hardy in 

 northern rockeries. They are unknown in America now. 

 The best of the group is said to be V. eupressoides, 

 var. variabilis, known to English trade as V. sali- 

 comoides. Others in cultivation are V. Hectori, Arm- 

 strongi and lycopodioides. 



Veronica was monographed by Bentham in Latin in 

 DC. Prod. 10:458-491 (1846), 158 species being then 

 known. An excellent account of cultivated Veronicas is 

 found in Vilmorin's Blumengartnerei. 



A. Plants slirubby, all from New 

 Zealand and all with opposite 

 leaves; tender in the North. 

 b. Margin of lvs. coarsely sen-ate.. 

 BB. Margin of lvs. entire. 

 c. Pairs of lvs. crowded. 



D. Racemes subterminal ! 



121 



VERONICA 1919 



dd. Hacemes axillary .'I. elliptica 



CC. Pairs of lvs. rather distant 4. speciosa 



D. Height S-fi ft.: lvs. 1-1% in. 

 wide. 

 dd. Height 10-15 ft. or more: Irs. 

 4S lines wide. 

 e. Capsule scarcely twice as 



long as calyx 5. salicifolia 



EE. Capsule about three times 



as long as calyx 6. macrocarpa 



aa. Plants hardy herbs. 

 B. Duration annual. 



o. Height a foot or less: fls. blue. 



d. Hacemes axillary 7. Buxbaumii 



dd. Racemes terminal 8. Syriaca 



cc. Height i-i ft.: fls. whitish 9. serpylliiolia 



BB. Duration perennial. 



0. Lvs. in whorls of 4-7: corolla 

 sa leer-shaped, tube longer 



than Urn b 10. Virginica 



CC. Lvs. usually opposite, occa- 

 sionally alternate. 

 d. Racemes terminal, 

 E. Habit creeping : plants 

 S-12 in. high. 



f. Capsule oblong 11. alpina 



FF. Capsule roundish or 

 broader than long. 

 G. Apex of capsule 



slightly notched 12. gentianoides 



GG. Apex of capsule deeply 



notched 13. repens 



EE. Habit upright : plants 

 stronger growing and 

 taller. 

 F. Foliage and stem white- 

 woolly 14. incana 



FF. Foliage nearly glabrous: 

 lvs. large, dentate. 

 a. Lower lvs. pinnatisect. 15. pinnata 

 aa. Lower lvs. merely ser- 

 rate or crenate. 

 H. Hacemes panicled. .10. spuria 

 HH. Hacemes solitary or 

 few. 

 i. Lvs. lanceolate ...17. longifolia 

 II. Lvs. ovate-oblong.. 18. spicata 

 DD. Racemes axillary. 



E. Habit low and creeping. 



F. Lvs. narrow 19. circaeoides 



ff. Lvs. broader. 



a. The racemes few-fid... 20. montana 

 GG. The racemes many-fid. 

 H. Fls. pale blue, 



rarely pink 21. officinalis 



HH. Fls. deep blue, white 



center 22. pectinata 



ee. Habit taller, more upright. 



f. Calyx 4-parted 23. Chamsedrya 



FF. Calyx 5-parted. 



G. Lvs. more or less den- 

 tate 24. Teucrium 



GG. Lvs. deeply pinnat if id. 25. Austriaca 



1. Hulkeana, F. Mueller. Showy lilac-fld. species, 

 readily distinguished by its serrate lvs. and terminal 

 racemes. Slender, erect, sparingly leafy, straggling 

 shrub, 1-3 ft. high, with branching stems: lvs. 1-1 % 

 in. long, in sparse pairs, ovate or oblong, obtuse or 

 acute, coarsely serrate, smooth, leathery : raceme slen- 

 der, terminal, branching, spreading, 4-10 in. long: fls. 

 sessile, lilac: capsule small, longer than broad, twice 

 exceeding the sepals. Summer. Mts. and rocky places. 

 New Zealand. B.M. 5484. 



2. Traversii, Hook. f. White-flowered shrub about 2-3 

 ft., of special interest as being hardy in Ireland and 

 parts of England. A smooth, much-branched shrub: 

 lvs. linear or linear-oblong, entire, smooth, opposite, 

 sessile, thick, %-l in. long, numerous: racemes axil- 

 lary, large: fls. many, small, white or mauve: capsule 

 acute, 3-4 times exceeding the calyx. All summer. 

 New Zealand. B.M. 6390. Gn. 32, p. 217. 



