Veronica subfulvida
Common names
hebe
Biostatus
Native – Endemic taxon
Current conservation status
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2023 | Not Threatened
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Trees & Shrubs - Dicotyledons
Simplified description
Bushy shrub bearing pairs of narrow pointed leaves and bushy white flower spikes inhabiting northern South Island. Leaves 9-32mm long by 3.5-6mm wide. Leaf with narrow gap between leaves at base. Flower spike bushy, to 6cm long, with several branches.
Flower colours
White
Detailed description
Bushy shrub to 1.8 m tall. Branches erect and spreading, old stems brown or grey; branchlets green (often with reddish or dark bands at nodes), puberulent, hairs bifarious (usually) or uniform; internodes 1.7-11 mm; leaf decurrencies obscure or evident. Leaf bud distinct; sinus narrow to broad, acute. Leaves decussate or subdistichous. Erecto-patent or patent; lamina elliptic to lanceolate or oblanceolate (sometimes), rigid or subcoriaceous, concave. (6.3-) 9-32 (-38.2) x (2.8-) 3.5-6 (7.5) mm; apex acute to subacute; midrib depressed to grooved above and thickened below (slightly, often keeled near apex); margin minutely papillate and/or ciliolate (with short, stiff hairs) and/or glandular ciliate; upper surface green, glossy or dull, without evident stomata (or, occasionally, with a few scattered stomata apparently in sunken pits), hairy along midrib; lower surface lighter green than upper surface; petiole (0.8-) 1.5-3.5 (-4.5) mm, hairy along margins and above. Inflorescences with 24-88 flowers, lateral, with 3 or more branches (occasionally with undeveloped branches in lowest bracts) or unbranched (rarely, and never all inflorescences on one plant), 1-3.6 (-5.9) cm; peduncle 0.35-1.4 cm; rachis 0.7-2.5 (-4.8) cm. Bracts alternate (usually) or lowermost pair opposite, then subopposite or alternate above, ovate to lanceolate or oblong or lowermost sometimes linear, subacute to acute. Flowers probably hermaphrodite. Pedicels 0.5-2 (-4) mm. Calyx 1.9-3.4 mm, 4-5-lobed (5th lobe small, posterior); lobes elliptic to ovate or lanceolate, subacute to obtuse or emarginate (sometimes). Corolla tube hairy inside, (2.1-) 2.5-4.3 x 1.2-2.6 mm, cylindric or funnel form (narrowly), longer than calyx; lobes white or pink at anthesis and with age, elliptic to ovate, obtuse, suberect to patent, longer to shorter than corolla tube. Stamen filaments 3.5-5.5 mm; anthers pink or mauve, 1.6-2.6 mm. Ovary 1.1-1.5 mm; ovules 7-11 per locule; style 4.5-8.5 mm. Capsules subacute, 2.9-4.5 x 1.9-3.2 mm, loculicidal split extending ¼-½-way to base. Seeds flattened, broad ellipsoid to discoid, brown (sometimes with an orange component), 1.2-2 x 0.8-1.4 mm, micropylar rim 0.3-0.5 mm.
Similar taxa
Highly variable in terms of habit and leaf size. It resembles V. diosmifolia (geographically separated), V. brachysiphon and some populations of V. venustula (also geographically separated). Distinguished from V. brachysiphon by the combination of a bushy, often rounded habit; usually acute leaf bud sinuses; non-glaucous leaves; pedicellate flowers; small bracts; and corolla tubes usually longer than surrounding calyces, not all are present in V. subfulvida. It can be difficult to distinguish from V. brachysiphon, and for this reason the southern and eastern limits of the species are unclear (i.e. it may extend further south and east than suggested in distribution). It frequently grows with V. leiophylla, from which it is distinguished by the usual presence of branched inflorescences, a more elongated sinus and less hairy branchlets.
Distribution
South Island - Nelson and Marlborough, from the Aorere Range to near Nelson Lakes, and D’Urville Island.
Habitat
Ranging from riverbanks, rock outcrops of various substrates (e.g. ultramafic or calcareous), scrub and beech forest margins, chiefly in montane to lowland situations, occasionally subalpine.
Detailed taxonomy
Genus
Family
Synonyms
Hebe divaricata (Cheeseman) Cockayne et Allan, Veronica menziesii var. divaricata Cheeseman, Hebe subfulvida G.Simpson et J.S.Thomson, Hebe corymbosa G.Simpson
Endemic taxon
Yes
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Ecology
Flowering
December-February (-March)
Fruiting
January-May (-October)
Life cycle and dispersal
Seeds are wind dispersed (Thorsen et al., 2009).
Other information
Etymology
veronica: Named after Saint Veronica, who gave Jesus her veil to wipe his brow as he carried the cross through Jerusalem, perhaps because the common name of this plant is ‘speedwell’. The name Veronica is often believed to derive from the Latin vera ‘truth’ and iconica ‘image’, but it is actually derived from the Macedonian name Berenice which means ‘bearer of victory’.
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
VERSBF
Chromosome number
2n = 80
Previous conservation statuses
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2022-2023 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS) – more information about this can be found on the NZTCS website. This report includes replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Previous assessments can be found here.
- Conservation status of vascular plants in Aotearoa New Zealand, 2023. 2024. Peter J. de Lange, Jane Gosden, Shannel P. Courtney, Alexander J. Fergus, John W. Barkla, Sarah M. Beadel, Paul D. Champion, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Troy Makan and Pascale Michel Department of Conservation. Source: NZTCS and licensed by DOC for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
2017 | Not Threatened
2012 | Not Threatened
2009 | Not Threatened
2004 | Not Threatened
Referencing and citations
References and further reading
Bayly, M.J., Kellow, A.V. 2006. An illustrated guide to New Zealand Hebes. Wellington, N.Z.: Te Papa press pg. 258
Thorsen, M. J.; Dickinson, K. J. M.; Seddon, P. J. 2009. Seed dispersal systems in the New Zealand flora. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 11: 285-309
Attribution
Description adapted by M. Ward from Bayly & Kellow (2006).