Sweet sand verbena

Images

Click on image to view full size

Sweet sand verbena leaves

Sweet sand verbena

Sweet sand verbena

Sweet sand verbena

Sweet sand verbena flowers

Sweet sand verbena

Sweet sand verbena leaves

Sweet sand verbena inflorescence

Sweet sand verbena

Sweet sand verbena head after flowering

Sweet sand verbena

Sweet sand verbena inflorescences

Sweet sand verbena flowers closed

Sweet sand verbena

Morphology

Stem

Erect to trailing or reclining with tips ascending, few to numerous, 1 to 4 feet long, branched from base and above, finely-hairy, sticky, sometimes whitish.

Leaves

Opposite, pairs often unequal, simple, fleshy, variable, ovate to triangular or lanceolate, 1/2 to 4 inches long, lower surface paler; tip rounded to pointed; stalk .4 to 2.8 inches long, sticky-hairy to rarely smooth.

Inflorescence

Heads, showy, 1 to 2.5 inches across, 10- to 40-flowered, on long stalks in upper leaf axils; heads subtended by 5-7 distinct bracts; bracts ovate to broadly lanceolate, 1/3 to 4/5 inch long, 1/6 to 1/2 inch wide, whitish, sometimes pinkish or purplish, tips pointed.

Flower

Sweet fragrance; calyx corolla-like, funnel-shaped; tube narrow, slender, 3/5 to 4/5 inch long, purplish-pink, expanded at tip into flat limb; limb 5-lobed, 1/8 to 2/5 inch wide, white or pinkish; corolla absent; stamens 5, not extending beyond tube; stigma linear.

Fruit

Achene, enclosed by hard, leathery, winged, top-shaped calyx base; achene egg-shaped, about 1/10 inch long, lustrous, black or brown, 1-seeded.

Ecology

Habitat

Sandy prairies, stream valleys, dunes, waste places, roadsides; dry, loose sand.

Distribution

Principally west 1/3 of Kansas.

Practical Information

Uses

Native Americans in the Southwest steeped the plant and used the cold tea as a wash for sores, insect bites, and boils; ate the fresh flowers to treat stomachaches; and ate the ground roots mixed with corn meal to increase one's appetite. The flowers were also made into ceremonial necklaces.

Additional Notes