''Veronica perfoliata'', commonly known as digger's speedwell, is a common

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

herb Herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances. Culinary use typically distingu ...

found at higher altitudes in south-eastern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. It is a low-growing multi-stemmed plant rising from a woody rootstock. It has rounded blue-grey foliage and sprays of intense violet-blue flowers at the end of arching branches. It is occasionally cultivated as a garden plant.

Description

''Veronica perfoliata'' is an erect woody herb with arching

decumbent This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary ...

branches long. The leaves are smooth and bluish green with a powdery bloom, about long and wide. Leaves are either narrow or broad egg-shaped and arranged in opposite pairs, joined to the stem either in a wedge, heart, or stem-clasping configuration. The leaf margin may be entire, finely scalloped or with approximately 10 pairs of rough or shallow sharp teeth. Plants with narrower leaves generally grow in drier situations, whereas the broad-leaf form in wetter cooler locations. Leaves have 3-9 longitudinal veins radiating from the base. Numerous woody stems grow from a rootstock and form a clump, rarely branched below the

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

. The inflorescence is a slender

raceme A raceme () or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate growth, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are ...

, long with 25–70 flowers per stem. When fruiting the

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

is long. The smooth

calyx CALYX, Inc. is a non-profit publisher of art and literature by women founded in 1976 based in Corvallis, Oregon. CALYX publishes both '' CALYX, A Journal of Art and Literature by Women'' twice a year and CALYX Books, which publishes one to three ...

lobes are long and wide. The individual violet-blue flower petals are long. The seed capsules are egg-shaped long and wide. Capsules are barely flattened, dull, and either rounded or sharply pointed. Flowering occurs from October to February.

Taxonomy and naming

Robert Brown Robert Brown may refer to: Robert Brown (born 1965), British Director, Animator and author Entertainers and artists * Washboard Sam or Robert Brown (1910–1966), American musician and singer * Robert W. Brown (1917–2009), American printmaker ...

first formally described the species in 1810, using ''V. perfoliata'', in the botanical survey ''

Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae ''Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen'' (Prodromus of the Flora of New Holland and Van Diemen's Land) is a book by the botanist Robert Brown Robert Brown may refer to: Robert Brown (born 1965), British Director, Animator and ...

''. Constantine Rafinesque,

Barbara Briggs Barbara Gillian Briggs (born 1934) is one of the foremost Australian botanists. The '' IK'' lists 205 names of plants which have been published or co-published by her. She was one of the botanists in the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, of th1998 APG ...

and

Friedrich Ehrendorfer Friedrich Ehrendorfer (26 July 1927 – 28 November 2023) was an Austrian botanist who was professor emeritus of plant systematics at the Department of Botany and Biodiversity Research, University of Vienna. He was an honorary member of the Americ ...

changed the name to ''Parahebe perfoliata'' or ''Derwentia perfoliata'', but the changes have not been accepted by the

Australian Plant Census The Australian Plant Census (APC) provides an online interface to currently accepted, published, scientific names of the vascular flora of Australia, as one of the output interfaces of the national government Integrated Biodiversity Information Sys ...

. The

specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

(''perfoliata'') refers to the plant having "perfoliate" leaves, where the stem appears to be passing through the leaves. The common name "digger's speedwell" derives from a belief that the species is a reliable indicator of the presence of gold. "Speedwell" is a name for several species of veronica.

Distribution and habitat

Digger's speedwell grows at higher altitudes between high in mountainous meadows, heath, eucalypt forest, and woodland in

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory until 1938, is an internal States and territories of Australia, territory of Australia. Canberra, the capital city of Australia, is situated within the territory, an ...

, and

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

. It grows in similar areas to '' V. derwentiana'' but in shallow, often rocky soil on steep slopes rather than deeper soils in shaded sites. The broad range of the species contrasts with the belief that it indicates the presence of gold.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7922478 Flora of New South Wales Flora of Victoria (state) Flora of the Australian Capital Territory perfoliata Plants described in 1810 Taxa named by Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)