Veronica arvensis L., Plantaginaceae

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Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Other Latin names:  Veronica sartoriana Boiss. & Heldr.

Common name(s): [more details]

Chinese: zhi li po po na

English: common speedwell, corn speedwell, field speedwell, rock speedwell, wall speedwell

Japanese: tachi-inunofuguri

Habit:  herb

Description:  "Annuals. Stems erect or ascending, simple or branched and diffuse, 5-30 cm tall, with white multicellular hairs often concentrated along 2 lines. Leaves often 3-5 pairs, lower ones short petiolate, upper sessile; leaf blade ovate-orbicular, 5-15 x 4-10 mm, hirsute, margin crenate, veins 3-5. Racemes terminal, lax, elongated to 20 cm, many flowered, with multicellular glandular hairs; bracts alternate, leaflike, lower ones narrowly ovate and sparsely crenate, upper ones narrowly elliptic and entire. Pedicel less than 2 mm. Calyx 4-lobed, 3-4 mm; lobes linear-lanceolate, lower 2 lobes longer than upper 2. Corolla blue to blue-purple, rotate, ca. 2 mm, shorter than calyx; lobes orbicular to narrowly oblong. Stamens shorter than corolla. Capsule obcordate, strongly compressed, 2.5-3.5 x 3-4 mm, glabrous, margin glandular ciliate, apex notch very deep; lobes rounded-obtuse. Style less than 1 mm, shorter than to equaling notch. Seeds oblong, ca. 1 mm, smooth"  (Flora of China online).

Habitat/ecology:  In China, "naturalized in waste grassy places and along roads; below 2000 m"  (Flora of China online).  In New Zealand, "Often very common; open modified habitats such as waste places, roadsides, arable land, short and poor or depleted pastures, lawns, stream beds and cliffs from sea level to c. 1000 m"  (Webb et al., 1988; p. 1209).  In Australia, "grows in grassy areas, disturbed sites, weed of lawns and gardens; widespread"  (NSW PlantNET).

Propagation:  Seed

Native range:  Canary and Madeira Islands, Europe, northern Africa, western and central Asia; widely naturalized elsewhere (GRIN).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Lord Howe Island	Lord Howe Island	introduced invasive	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1994)
Australia (Pacific offshore islands) Norfolk Islands	Norfolk Island	introduced invasive	Orchard, Anthony E., ed. (1994)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive	Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido (2006) (p. 558)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1250) Voucher cited: Faurie 892 (BISH)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1250)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Moloka‘i Island	introduced invasive	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 1250)
New Zealand (offshore islands) Kermadec Islands	Kermadec Islands	introduced invasive	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 1209)

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	New South Wales	introduced invasive	National Herbarium of New South Wales (2011)
Canada Province of British Columbia	Canada (British Columbia)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
Canada Canada	Canada (country)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
China China	China (People's Republic of)	introduced invasive	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011)
Japan Japan	Japan (country)	introduced	Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro (2004) (p. 189)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 1209)
Taiwan Taiwan	Taiwan Island	introduced invasive	Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong (2011)
United States (west coast) United States (west coast states)	USA (Oregon)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
United States (west coast) United States (west coast states)	USA (California)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
United States (west coast) United States (west coast states)	USA (Washington)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)

Also reported from
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	United States (other states)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)
United States (continental except west coast) United States (other states)	USA (Florida)	introduced	U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. (2011)

Additional information:
Photos and other information from Missouri Plants.

Additional online information about Veronica arvensis is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Information about Veronica arvensis as a weed (worldwide references) may be available from the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Taxonomic information about Veronica arvensis may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John. 2011. Naturalized species in the Juan Fernández Archipelago, Chile. Unpublished spreadsheet.

Danton, Philippe/Perrier, Christophe/Martinez Reyes, Guido. 2006. Nouveau catalogue de la flore vaculaire de l'archipel Juan Fernández (Chile) [Nuevo catálogo de la flora vacular del Archipélago Juan Fernández (Chile)]. Acta Bot. Gallica 153(4):399-587.

Mito, Toshikazu/Uesugi, Tetsuro. 2004. Invasive alien species in Japan: the status quo and the new regulation for prevention of their adverse effects. Global Environmental Research 8(2)/2004: 171-191.

National Herbarium of New South Wales. 2011. PlantNet: New South Wales Flora online. The Plant Information Network System of the Botanic Gardens Trust Version 2.0. Online resource.

Orchard, Anthony E., ed. 1994. Flora of Australia. Vol. 49, Oceanic islands 1. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.

U. S. Government. 2011. Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) (on-line resource).

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2011. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Nat. Res. Cons. Serv. 2011. The PLANTS Database. National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. 1999. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawaii. Revised edition. Bernice P. Bishop Museum special publication. University of Hawai‘i Press/Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 1919 pp. (two volumes).

Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. 1988. Flora of New Zealand, Volume IV: Naturalised pteridophytes, gymnosperms, dicotyledons. Botany Division, DSIR, Christchurch. 1365 pp.

Zhengyi, Wu/Raven, Peter H./Deyuan, Hong. 2011. Flora of China (online resource).