Kentucky Plant Atlas




Record uncertain    No county information
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Veronicaceae <Veroniceae> [Scrophulariaceae*] Veronica <Pocilla> agrestis
Veronica agrestis L.
ALI: EU HAB: H-10?, ::::, C?, 6 ABU: n/a, n/a, 5
Presence in Ky. remains uncertain; the species was not mapped for the state in FNA 17. This tetraploid (2n = 28) winter annual may be widely scattered over eastern states, but it is similar to the closely related polita and there has been much confusion (Ch, F, GC, W; Juan et al. 1996; Tutin et al. 2001). V. agrestis is reportedly concentrated in mid- to cool temperate regions (especially on damp noncalcareous soils), versus polita in mid- to warm-temperate (especially on calcareous soils). Reported colls. from Ky. should be checked; all of them date from after 1970 as in polita. In the late 19th Century, agrestis was still mostly (or perhaps only) reported from "near the coast" (Gray 1864, 1889). V. agrestis appears to differs from polita as follows (based mostly on citations above): plants generally larger, the stems typically 15-25 cm long (versus 5-15 cm), the leaves more sparsely distributed and typically 5-10 mm x 4-7 mm (versus 3-7 mm x 3-6 mm), with cuneate to rounded base (versus rounded to subcordate); sepals somewhat obtuse, oblong (versus somewhat acute, ovate); styles about 0.5-1 mm and not exceeding the capsule sinus (versus 1-1.5 mm and exceeding); capsules generally more elongated (mostly 4-6 x 3-4 mm versus 2.5-4 x 3.5-6 mm), lacking short curled eglandular hairs (versus present in polita, as well as the longer straight glandular hairs in both species); flowers with lower lobe usually white to pale blue with darker stripes (versus more uniform blue). However, there is some inconsistency among published descriptions.