Veronica americana

Veronica americana
Conservation status
	; Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Plantaginaceae
Genus:	Veronica
Species:	V. americana
Binomial name
	Veronica americana; Schwein. ex Benth.

Veronica americana, variously called American brooklime^[2] or American speedwell,^[2]^[3] is a plant native to temperate and arctic Asia and North America^[2] where it grows in streams and bottomlands.

It is a herbaceous perennial with glabrous stems 10–100 cm long that bear terminal or axillary racemes or spikes of soft violet flowers. The leaves are 1.5–8 cm long and 3 to 20 times as long as wide, short-petiolate, glabrous, serrate to almost entire.^[4]

The plant can be confused with Scutellaria (skullcap) and other members of the mint family. Members of the mint family have square sided stems, and Veronica species have rounded stems.^[5]

Uses

American speedwell is used both as food and as a medicinal plant.^{[citation needed]} It is rich in nutrients and is reported to have a flavor similar to that of watercress.^[6] As long as the water source is not contaminated, the entire plant (sans roots) can be eaten raw.^[7]

References

^ Maiz-Tome, L. (2016). "Veronica americana". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T64326255A67731217. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Veronica americana". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 2008-03-30.
^ "Veronica americana Schwein. ex Benth". PLANTS Profile. United States Department of Agriculture; Natural Resources Conservation Service. Retrieved 2008-03-30.
^ "Veronica americana". WTU Herbarium Image Collection. Burke Museum, University of Washington. Retrieved 2008-03-30.
^ Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West, Gregory L. Tilford, ISBN 0-87842-359-1
^ Reiner, Ralph E. (1969). Introducing the Flowering Beauty of Glacier National Park and the Majestic High Rockies. Glacier Park, Inc. p. 96.
^ Nyerges, Christopher (2017). Foraging Washington: Finding, Identifying, and Preparing Edible Wild Foods. Guilford, CT: Falcon Guides. ISBN 978-1-4930-2534-3. OCLC 965922681.

Uses

References

Further reading