Common name:
Heath speedwell
Family:
Scientific name:
Veronica officinalis
Main flower color:
Range:
All of the UK; least common in parts of central England
Height:
Up to 10 cm
Habitat:
Heaths, open woodland, grassland
Flowers:
Up to 8 mm in diameter; four pale pink petals, crossed by purple veins, and four narrow sepals, attached by a very short stalk. Occasionally the petals are pure white. Each flower is subtended by a narrow bract, longer than the stalk. The two stamens and one pistil project well beyond the petals. The inflorescence is an elongated cluster, the flowers growing from the upper leaf nodes
Leaves:
Ovate, hairy, up to 2 cm long, lined by small, shallow teeth
Season:
May to August
Rarity:
★★★★★
