Plants of South Eastern New South Wales
Veronica derwentiana
Common name
Derwent Speedwell, White Veronica
Family
Plantaginaceae
Where found
Forest, woodland, grassland, herbfields, rocky slopes, and gullies. Widespread. Rare on the Western Slopes.
subsp. derwentiana: Coast, ranges, and tablelands, south of the Kings Highway. ACT, the mountains to the west, Kosciuszko National Park, and the Western Slopes west of Kosciuszko National Park towards Albury.
subsp. maideniana: Ranges and the mountainous parts of the tablelands south of the Kings Highway. ACT, the mountains to the west, and Kosciuszko National Park.
subsp. subglauca: Ranges and eastern edge of the tablelands north from the Wombeyan Caves area.
Notes
Woody herb to 2 m high. Stems several to many, each stem persisting for 1 or 2 years, surface hairless or with short, fine curved or twisted hairs, in longitudinal bands or rarely over the whole surface. Leaves opposite each other, mostly 5–20 cm long, 12–50 mm wide, tips pointed, bases wedge-shaped to squared off or cordate, margins with 30–80 pairs of teeth with a small abrupt point. Flowers white or pale lilac or pale blue, sometimes pinkish outside or on the buds, tubular, the tube 5–9 mm long, with 4 spreading lobes each to 8 mm long. Stamens 2. Flower clusters mostly 8–25 cm long, 40–100-flowered. Flowering: spring-summer.
subsp. derwentiana: Leaves mostly 15–25 mm wide, narrow, the length 4–11 times the width, marginal teeth mostly uniform or alternating large and small. Leaf bases wedge-shaped or squared-off. Leaves paler on the lower surface but not with a waxy bloom. Base of the style and the summit of the ovary hairy or rarely hairless. Seed cases somewhat pointed or squared off or slightly notched. Individual flower stalks mostly 5–7 mm long at the seeding stage.
All native plants on unleased land in the ACT are protected.
subsp. maideniana: Leaves mostly 30–50 mm wide, broad, the length 1.6–3.5 times breadth, marginal teeth mostly uniform or alternating large and small. Leaf bases cordate or squared-off. Leaves paler on the lower surface but not with a waxy bloom. Base of the style and the summit of the ovary hairy or rarely hairless. Seed cases somewhat pointed or squared off or slightly notched. Individual flower stalks mostly 2–4 mm long at the seeding stage.
All native plants on unleased land in the ACT are protected.
subsp. subglauca: Leaves 5-10 cm long, narrow, with 30-80 marginal teeth per side. Lower surface of the leaves with a waxy bloom. Flowers white or blue. Base of the style and the summit of the ovary hairless. Seed cases distinctly notched. Individual flower stalks 5–10 mm long at the seeding stage.
Family was Scrophulariaceae.
Was Parahebe derwentiana, then Derwentia derwentiana.
PlantNET description of species and key to subspecies: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Veronica~derwentiana (accessed 8 February, 2021)
This identification key and fact sheets are available as a free mobile application:
