Veronica quadrifaria

Detailed description

Subshrub to 0.3 m tall, of semiwhipcord form. Branches decumbent; internodes (0.15-) 0.2- 0.7 (-0.8) mm; branchlets, including leaves, (1.3-) 1.5-2.4 (-2.7) mm wide, square in transverse section (or almost so, especially older pans of branchlets, away from the apex); connate leaf bases glabrous; leaves not readily abscising, persistent along the stem for some distance. Leaf bud tightly surrounded by recently diverged leaves. Leaves connate, appressed; lamina deltoid (often broadly so) or semi-circular (more rarely); apex obtuse to acute; venation not evident in fresh leaves; margin ciliate; lower surface light to dark green. Inflorescences with 2-6 flowers, lateral, unbranched, 0.3-0.5 (-0.75) cm; peduncle 0.1-0.35 cm; rachis hairy or glabrous. Bracts opposite and decussate, free (usually) or connate, deltoid (and lowermost often keeled beneath), obtuse. Flowers male or female (on different plants). Pedicels absent or if evident then always shorter than bracts, 0-0.5 mm, glabrous or hairy. Calyx 1.3-2.2 mm; lobes deltoid or ovate or oblong, obtuse, with mixed glandular and eglandular cilia (glandular cilia may not be apparent, stalk cell may be very short), rarely hairy outside. Corolla tube glabrous; tube of male flowers approximately 1-1.1 mm, shorter than calyx; tube of female flowers 0.5-1.2 x approximately 1 mm, contracted at base (and more or less expanded around middle), shorter than or equalling calyx; lobes white or pink at anthesis, elliptic or ovate or rhomboid (and auriculate above contracted base), obtuse, suberect to recurved, longer than corolla tube, papillate inside. Stamen filaments remaining erect, 1.1-1 .4 mm (female approximately 1.1 mm; male approximately 1.4 mm); anthers magenta, 1-1.1 mm; sterile anthers of female flowers magenta, approximately 0.5 mm. Nectarial disc glabrous or ciliate. Ovary ovoid or ellipsoid, 0.4-0.6 mm; ovules 4-5 per locule, in 2 vertical rows on placenta; style 1.5-2.2 mm; stigma usually larger in female flowers. Capsules angustiseptate, obtuse, 1.6-2.2 mm long, 1.3-2 mm thick, septicidal split extending 1/3 to all way to base, loculicidal split extending ½-¾-way to base. Seeds weakly flattened to more or less trigonal, ellipsoid, brown, 1-1.2 x 0.5-0.7 mm, micropylar rim 0.2-0.3 mm. 211 = 42.