Veronica agrestis
L.
Plantaginaceae
Cardia agrestis (L.) Dulac
Cochlidiosperma agreste (L.) Opiz
Pocilla agrestis (L.) Fourr.
Common Name: Field Speedwell
General Information
Veronica agrestis is an annual, branching profusely from the base and growing 5 - 30cm tall, occasionally to 40cm, The stems are ascending to decumbent, often rooting at the nodes[
74- Title
- Flora of the USSR.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Komarov. V. L.
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
- Publisher
- Israel Program for Scientific Translation
- Year
- 1968
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
].
The plant is sometimes harvested from the wild for local use as a food and a medicine.
The plant has spread as a weed to many areas of the temperate zone.
Known Hazards
None known
Botanical References
17- Title
- Flora of the British Isles.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Clapham, Tutin and Warburg.
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Year
- 1962
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
,
74- Title
- Flora of the USSR.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Komarov. V. L.
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
- Publisher
- Israel Program for Scientific Translation
- Year
- 1968
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
Range
Europe - Norway to Portugal, east to European Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria and Greece; N. Africa - Macaronesia, Morocco to Libya; W. Asia- Israel, Jordan
Habitat
Cultivated ground throughout Britain, common in the north, local in the south[
17- Title
- Flora of the British Isles.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Clapham, Tutin and Warburg.
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Year
- 1962
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
]. A weed in fields, gardens, kitchen gardens, in forest and forest-steppe zones; rarely in mixed-grass area in foothills and mountains at elevations up to 1,800 metres[
74- Title
- Flora of the USSR.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Komarov. V. L.
- Website
- http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
- Publisher
- Israel Program for Scientific Translation
- Year
- 1968
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
],
Properties
| Edibility Rating |  |
| Medicinal Rating |  |
| Habit | Annual |
| Height | 0.20 m |
| Pollinators | Diptera, Hymenoptera, Self |
| Self-fertile | Yes |
| Cultivation Status | Wild |
Cultivation Details
Species in this genus are generally easily grown in a moderately fertile moisture retentive well drained soil[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
]. Prefers cool summers[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
Edible Uses
Leaves and young shoots - raw or cooked. A bitter flavour[
K- Title
- Plants for a Future
- Author
- Ken Fern
- Description
- Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
]. A famine food, it is only used when all else fails[
179- Title
- Famine Foods listed in the Chiu-Huang Pen-ts'ao.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Reid. B. E.
- Publisher
- Southern Materials Centre; Taipei
- Year
- 1977
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- A translation of an ancient Chinese book on edible wild foods. Fascinating.
].
Medicinal
A decoction of the plant is used in the treatment of dysmenorrhoea and haemorrhages[
218- Title
- Medicinal Plants of China
- Publication
-
- Author
- Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S.
- Publisher
- Reference Publications, Inc.
- Year
- 1985
- ISBN
- 0-917256-20-4
- Description
- Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.
].
Other Uses
None known
Propagation
Seed - sow spring or autumn in situ.
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Useful Temperate Plants Database 2016 by
Ken Fern,
web interface by
Ajna Fern
with help from
Richard Morris.
