VERVAIN FAMILY. Verbenaceae. 



silvery light green leaves, linear lance-shaped, toothless, 

 and stemless. The flowers are rather showy, tubular or 

 vase-shaped with five rounded unequal divisions ; the 

 four stamens, which, with the pistil, are pink, extend 

 far beyond the limit of the corolla. The flower-spike 

 one-sided, at first closely coiled, but finally long and but 

 slightly curved ; the blossoms are pink, but the mature 

 flower is light ultramarine violet. l-2 feet high. Road- 

 sides and pastures from Me. to Va., and west to Nev. 

 and S. Dak. Naturalized from Europe. The name 

 Greek, l^tS, meaning a viper. Rare in central N. H. 



VERVAIN FAMILY. Verbenacece. 



Generally herbs (at least in our range) with opposite 

 leaves and perfect, more or less irregular flowers in ter- 

 minal clusters. The corolla with united petals, uniform 

 in shape, or two-lipped, the tube generally cylindrical 

 and spreading into 4-5 lobes. Four stamens, two long 

 and two short, or very rarely only two. Probably self- 

 fertilized, though cross-fertilization may occur, assisted 

 by the honeybee, bumblebee, and the beelike flies. 



A troublesome annual weed with a four- 

 opean sided, slender, nearly smooth, branching 



Verbena stem, and minutely hairy leaves, deeply 



offidnalis cleft and sharp-toothed ; the upper ones 



Purplish lance-shaped and toothless, the lower 



or white ovate and sharply divided; all deep green. 



September ^ e small pale purple or white flowers in 



branching spikes about 5 inches long, in- 

 conspicuous and uninteresting. 1-3 feet high. In waste 

 places everywhere. Naturalized from Europe. 



A similar perennial species with white 

 Vervain flowers; usually with erect slightly rough- 



Verbena hairy stem four-sided and grooved, and 



iirticcefolia coarsely toothed, deep green leaves, all or 

 White nearly all with distinct stems, acute, and 



Se' tember slightly hairy. The flower-spikes at length 



very long, the white flowers very small. 

 3-5 feet high. In fields and waste places, from Me., 

 south, and west to Minn., S. Dak., and Tex. 



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