Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Lamiids: Lamiales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Veronica persica
FAMILY
Plantaginaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Read more about Bird's-eye Speedwell at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Veronica persica
FAMILY
Scrophulariaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Veronica persica
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Veronica persica
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 166-20-005:
Veronica persica FAMILY Scrophulariaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Veronica persica
COMMON NAME:
Bird's-eye Speedwell
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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JK Marlow jkm120112_858
January Jackson County NC
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JK Marlow jkm120227_074b
February Greenville County SC
Flowers are solitary in the upper leaf axils, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm120227_089b
February Greenville County SC
Leaves are ovate with a few coarse teeth, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm120227_094b
February Greenville County SC
Sepals 4-7mm, lanceolate to ovate, per Jepson eFlora, University of California, Berkeley.
)
JK Marlow jkm120227_099b
February Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm120227_117b
February Greenville County SC
The largest-flowered (nearly 0.5") Veronica of the southern mountains, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm160227_061
February Greenville County SC
Two well-exserted stamens, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
JK Marlow jkm160227_064
February Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm160227_065
February Greenville County SC
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_veronica_persica
February
)
Gill Newberry gn03_v_persica_fl
March
Flowers bright blue with darker stripes and a white center, on long pedicels, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm140308_099
March Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
)
JK Marlow jkm140308_106
March Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
Note the smaller hairier Ivyleaf Speedwell in the picture's lower left.
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Veronica persica
FAMILY
Plantaginaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Veronica persica
FAMILY
Scrophulariaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Veronica persica
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Veronica persica
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 166-20-005:
Veronica persica
FAMILY
Scrophulariaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Veronica persica
1615
Forb
Annual
Habitat: Lawns, fields, roadsides, disturbed areas, per Weakley's Flora
Non-native: Eurasia
Common (uncommon in GA Mountains & GA Piedmont) (rare in Coastal Plain of GA & SC)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Simple
Opposite (bracts gradually smaller, upper bracteal lvs often alternate)
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer/Fall
Blue
Bilaterally symmetrical
4 sepals
4-lobed rotate corolla
2 well exserted stamens
Superior ovary
Bisexual
Flowers solitary in upper leaf axils (or appearing so)
FRUIT:
Spring/Summer/Fall
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p096
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p411
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p091
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p226
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p335
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p249
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p292
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p159
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".