Contains 12 accepted taxa overall.
Characteristics
Classification
Citation
VERBENA Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 18. 1753.
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TYPE: Verbena officinalis Linnaeus Lectotypified by Britton & A. Brown, Ill. Fl. N. U.S., ed. 2. 3: 94. 1913.
Species
| Scientific Name | Common Name | Herbarium Specimens | Status | Photos |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verbena bonariensis | PURPLETOP VERVAIN; TALL VERBENA | Not Native | ||
| Verbena bracteata | BIGBRACT VERVAIN | Native FACU (NWPL) | ||
| Verbena brasiliensis | BRAZILIAN VERVAIN | Not Native FAC- (NWPL) | ||
| Verbena carnea | CAROLINA FALSE VERVAIN | Native | ||
| Verbena halei | TEXAS VERVAIN | Native | ||
| Verbena incompta | PURPLETOP VERVAIN | Not Native FAC (NWPL) | ||
| Verbena montevidensis | URUGUAYAN VERVAIN | Not Native | ||
| Verbena officinalis | HERB-OF-THE-CROSS | Native FACU (NWPL) | ||
| Verbena rigida | TUBEROUS VERVAIN | Not Native | ||
| Verbena scabra | SANDPAPER VERVAIN; HARSH VERVAIN | Native FACW (NWPL) FACW (DEP) | ||
| Verbena simplex | NARROWLEAF VERVAIN | Native | ||
| Verbena urticifolia | WHITE VERVAIN | Native FAC (NWPL) |
Identification Key
1. Spikes with flowers or fruits overlapping and mostly obscuring the rachis
2
1. Spikes with the flowers or fruits scarcely or not overlapping, the rachis mostly plainly visible
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2. Plant procumbent to decumbent; leaf blades pinnately lobed or dissected; subtending floral bracts 3 times as long or longer than the calyx
2. Plant erect; leaf blades coarsely serrate; subtending floral bracts subequaling the calyx
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3. Leaf blade base cuneate
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3. Leaf blade base auriculate-clasping
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4. Central spikes sessile to subsessile, spikes rather congested in the inflorescence, 3–5 mm wide, fruits densely overlapping
4. Central spikes pedunculate, spikes mostly spread out in the inflorescence, 2–3 mm wide, with fruits usually becoming remote at least in the proximal portion
5. Corolla tube 2.5–4 mm, subequaling the calyx; stems, peduncles, and calyces eglandular
5. Corolla tube 4–9 mm, 1.5–5 mm longer than the calyx; distal stems, peduncles, and calyces stipitate-glandular
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6. Corolla tube 4–7 mm long, 1.5–2 mm longer than the calyces
6. Corolla tube 6-9 mm long, ca. 2 times longer than the calyx
7. Leaf blades dissected, lobed, entire, or with less than 10 teeth along the margin of one side of most leaves
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7. Leaf blades regularly toothed, with more than 12 teeth along the margin of one side of most leaves
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8. Basal leaf blades toothed; basal flowers or fruits nearly overlapping
8. Basal leaf blades dissected or lobed; basal flowers widely spaced
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9. Basal and proximal leaves persistent at flowering time, the middle and distal ones reduced in number and size; fruit ca. 2 times as long as wide
9. Basal and proximal leaves deciduous at flowering time, the cauline ones evenly distributed and relatively even in size; fruit slightly longer than wide
10. Leaves sessile, the blade base cuneate, the petiole indistinct
10. Leaves petiolate, the base rounded and abruptly tapered to a winged petiole
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11. Sepals much exceeding the fruit, the lobes connivent (converging over the fruit and producing a beak)
11. Sepals subequal to the fruit, not connivent
Genus Synonyms
| Synonym | Full Citation | Basionym | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obletia | Obletia Le Monnier ex Rozier, Intr. Observ. Phys. Hist. Nat. 1: 367. 1771. | TYPE: Obletia verbenalacacea Le Monnier ex Rozier | |
| Styleruodon | Styleurodon Rafinesque, Fl. Tellur. 2: 104. 1837 ("1836"). | TYPE: Styleurodon carolinianum Rafinesque 1837, nom. illegit. (Phyrma caroliniensis Walter 1788.) = Stylodon Rafinesque 1825. | |
| Stylodon | Stylodon Rafinesque, Neogenyton 2. 1825. | TYPE: Stylodon scabrum Rafinesque 1825, nom. illegit. (Phryma caroliniensis Walter 1788.) | |
| Uwarowia | Uwarowia Bunge, Bull. Sci. Acad. Imp. Sci. Saint-Pétersbourg 7: 278. 1840. | TYPE: Uwarowia chrysanthemifolia Bunge, nom. illegi. (Verbena sulphurea Sweet) |