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Spiked Speedwell
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Spiked Speedwell
ntroduced Photo: Tabish
Common name: Spiked Speedwell, Blue Veronica
Botanical name: Veronica spicata    Family: Plantaginaceae (Isabgol family)
Synonyms: Pseudolysimachion spicatum, Veronica hybrida, Veronica porphyriana

Spiked Speedwell is a beautiful garden plant with stems often gray or gray-green, erect or ascending, 1 or several, 15-50 cm tall, simple, densely hairy. Opposietly arranged leaves are often more crowded at stem base. Stalks of lower leaves are about 2.5 cm long, shorter to stalkless on upper leaves. Leaves are oblong to lanceshaped, 2-8 X 0.5-3 cm, smaller upward, sparsely to densely sticky-hairy, margin entire or toothed. Flowers are borne in dense spikes with sticky hairs. Flowers are stalkless, sepal cup 2.5-3.5 mm. Flowers are purple, blue, or rarely white, 6-7 mm, tube about 1/3 of flower length. Petals are slightly patent, upper one ovate-lanceolate and other 3 lanceshaped. Stamens are slightly protruding. Young capsule is oblong-globose, with multicellular glandular hairs. Spiked Speedwell is native to temperate Asia, including Sibera, China and Turkey, cultivated in India.

Identification credit: Susmita Basu Photographed in Gangtok, Sikkim.

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