FoI
Germander Speedwell
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Germander Speedwell
P Introduced Photo: Shakir Ahmad
Common name: Germander Speedwell, Bird's-eye speedwell, Cat's eyes
Botanical name: Veronica chamaedrys    Family: Plantaginaceae (Isabgol family)
Synonyms: Veronica dubia, Veronica petiolata , Veronica pulchella

Germander Speedwell is a perennial rhizome forming herb, 10-35 cm. Stem rising up-erect, opposite sides hairy. Flowers are almost regular (actinomorphic), bright blue-purple, dark-striped in middle, 10-12 mm broad, fused, 4-lobed, wheel-shaped, short-tubed. Sepal-cup is 4-lobed, sepals linear, with glandular hairs, stamens 2. Pistil is a fused carpel. Inflorescence is a lax raceme, in leaf-axils. Racemes are often in pairs. Flower-stalk is longer than subtending bracts. Leaves are ppposite, lowest short-stalked, others stalkless. Blade ovate, with blunt base, both sides hairy, large-toothed. Fruit is inverted-heart-shaped, flat, shorter than broad, shorter than sepal-cup, hairy capsule. Germander Speedwell is found in meadows, pastures, fields, yards, gardens, lawns, banks, logging sites, from Europe to C. Asia. It is cultivated in parts of India. Flowering: May-August.

Identification credit: Shakir Ahmad Photographed in Kashmir.

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