Veronica americana
Plant species in the veronica family
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Veronica americana, variously called American brooklime[4] or American speedwell,[4][5] is a flowering plant native to temperate and arctic Asia and North America[4] where it grows in streams and bottomlands.
| Veronica americana | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Plantaginaceae |
| Genus: | Veronica |
| Species: | V. americana |
| Binomial name | |
| Veronica americana | |
| Synonyms[3] | |
| |
It is a herbaceous perennial with glabrous stems 10–100 cm (4–40 in) long that bear terminal or axillary racemes or spikes of soft violet flowers. The leaves are 1.5–8 cm (0.6–3.1 in) long and 3 to 20 times as long as wide, short-petiolate, glabrous, serrate to almost entire.[6]
The plant can be confused with Scutellaria (skullcap) and other members of the mint family. Members of the mint family have square sided stems, and Veronica species have rounded stems.[7]
Taxonomy
In 1830 Constantine Samuel Rafinesque described a variety of Veronica beccabunga he named americana. The botanist George Bentham raised to species status in a publication published in 1846 where he credited Lewis David de Schweinitz, giving the taxa its accepted name. It is classified in the genus Veronica which is part of the Plantaginaceae family. It does not have any accepted varieties or forms, but there are three among its eight synonyms.[3]
| Name | Year | Rank | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Veronica americana f. albiflora Tatew. ex H.Hara | 1948 | form | = het. |
| Veronica americana var. crassula Rydb. | 1900 | variety | = het. |
| Veronica americana f. rosea J.K.Henry | 1917 | form | = het. |
| Veronica anagallis Bong. | 1832 | species | = het. |
| Veronica beccabunga var. americana Torr. | 1843 | variety | = het., nom. illeg. |
| Veronica beccabunga var. americana Raf. | 1830 | variety | ≡ hom. |
| Veronica crenatifolia Greene | 1903 | species | = het. |
| Veronica intermedia Schwein. | 1824 | species | = het., nom. illeg. |
| Notes: ≡ homotypic synonym ; = heterotypic synonym | |||
Uses
American speedwell is used both as food and as a medicinal plant.[citation needed] It is rich in nutrients and is reported to have a flavor similar to that of watercress.[8] As long as the water source is not contaminated, the entire plant (sans roots) can be eaten raw.[9]
