Veronica insularis

Detailed description

Spreading low shrub to 0.5(-1) m tall. Branches decumbent or erect or sometimes pendent, old stems brown; branchlets red-brown, densely pubescent, hairs uniform to bifarious; internodes (1-)4-10.5 mm; leaf decurrencies evident (usually with± faint ridges running along medial line and margins, with a shallow groove forming between the decurrencies of a leaf pair). Leaf bud distinct; sinus absent, or small and rounded to narrow and acute. Leaves erectopatent to patent (usually) or recurved; lamina elliptic (usually) or slightly obovate, coriaceous or fleshy, flat or slightly concave, 7.5-32.5 x 3.7-13.5 mm; apex subacute or obtuse; margin ciliolate or glabrous; upper surface green to dark green and often slightly glaucous or glaucescent, dull, with many stomata, glabrous (usually) or hairy along midrib; lower surface green, glabrous (usually) or hairy along midrib; petiole glabrous (usually) or hairy along margins or above. Inflorescences with 7-46 flowers, lateral, with 3 or more branches, 2.2-4 cm, longer than (usually) or about equal to subtending leaves (rarely); peduncle 0.7-1.7 cm; rachis 1.2-2.8 cm. Bracts opposite and decussate below and becoming alternate above, deltoid (sometimes narrowly) or ovate or lanceolate, obtuse to acute. Flowers hermaphrodite. Pedicels 0.5-5.5 mm. Calyx 2- 4 mm, with anterior lobes free for most of their length (mostly) or united 1/3-2/3-way to apex (degree of fusion of anterior lobes varies on one inflorescence); lobes lanceolate or ovate, obtuse to acute, eglandular ciliate (almost always) or with mixed eglandular and occasional glandular cilia. Corolla tube glabrous, 2.9-4 x 2.2-3 mm, funnelform and contracted at base, longer than calyx; lobes white or tinged mauve at anthesis (often almost purple when young), broadly ovate, obtuse, suberect to recurved, longer than or equalling corolla tube. Stamen filaments 4.8 - 6.5 mm; anthers magenta, 1.8- 2.2 mm. Ovary approximately 0.9-1.1 mm; ovules 12-29 per locule, marginal on a flattened placenta (but usually recurved and appearing somewhat scattered), in 1- 3 layers; style 3.5-7.2 mm. Capsules subacute or obtuse, 2.5- 4.5 x 2-3 mm, septicidal split sometimes extending only ¾-way to base, loculicidal split extending ¼-½-way to base. Seeds flattened, ± ellipsoid, finely papillate, pale brown, 1- 1.2 x 0.6-0.8 mm, MR 0.2-0.3 mm.