Corn speedwell (Veronica arvensis)

Common Names: Common speedwell, rock speedwell, wall speedwell

Description: First observed in Michigan by the First Survey in 1837.

Habit: Prostrate, spreading, mat forming winter annual capable of reaching a height of 12 inches.

Leaves: Lower and middle leaves are opposite, broadly egg-shaped, hairy, short-stalked, rounded teeth along the margins. Upper leaves are small, narrow, bract like, alternate without petioles.

Stems: Covered with short hairs that get more dense towards the growing tips. Branching, sprawling, erect at the tips.

Flowers: Light blue to violet in color, inconspicuous, formed in the axils of the upper bract like leaves on elongated stems.

Fruit and seeds: Heart-shaped, 1/8 in long and wide, capsule, hairy around the edges. Seeds are small and yellowish in color.

Habitat: Native to Eurasia. Can be found in roadsides, trails, disturbed areas, forests, shores, rock ledges, moist fields, gardens, parking lots and waste areas.

Reproduction: By seed.

Similar species: Purslane speedwell (Veronica peregrina)

Monitoring and rapid response: Populations can be reduced by increasing nitrogen fertilization, regular mowing and the use of turfgrasses. Can be effectively controlled using any of several readily available general use herbicides such as 2, 4-D, triclopyr or dicamba.

Credits: The information provided in this factsheet was gathered from Minnesota Wildflowers, Michigan State University Plant & Pest Diagnostics Center and Penn State Extension.

Individual species images that appear with a number in a black box are courtesy of the Bugwood.org network (http://www.invasive.org).Individual photo author credits may not be included due to the small display size of the images and subsequent difficulty of reading the provided text. All other images appear courtesy of Google (http://images.google.com).

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