Common Name of Plant: Blue Vervain
Scientific Name of Plant: Verbena
Average Height of Plant: About three feet
Blooming Time: July to September
Ask the Botanist
What are the leaves like?
The leaves are about 2 inches long and 1 inch wide. They have saw tooth edges with a fuzzy
exterior. The leaf is divided down the middle by a narrow vein. The leaves are very thick and
stiff so they are hard to bend. The leaves are attached to the stem with no petiole. The leaves
stand up right and opposite each other on stiff, square, hairy stems. The leaves are cool to the
touch because of their fuzzy exterior.
What type of flowers bloom on this plant?
The tiny, tubular flowers grow on pencil-like spikes. The five-lobed, purplish-blue flowers
grow close to each other and bloom from the bottom to the top of the flower spikes.
The flowers bloom for a relatively long time from July through September.
What is unusual about the seedpods or seeds of this plant?
The seeds are a green color with a little bit of purple on the tips and clustered around each
flower spike. They seeds are soft to the touch. They are not nested inside capsules.
How is this plant important to animals? Has it also been used by people?
Vervain was used to kill tape worms, heal muscle cramps, cause vomiting, reduce fevers, and
reduce nervousness or irritation.
Wasps, flies, honeybees, bumblebees, and large leaf-months feed on the foliage. Birds such
as cardinals, slate-colored juncos, finches, and sparrows also feed on this plant.
Is there anything else unusual about this plant?
Vervain spreads readily.
Whole Plant
Leaf
http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/prairi
e/plantx/hry_vervainx.htm
http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/prairie/plantx
/hry_vervainx.htm
Seeds
Flowers and Buds
http://www.gatesheadbirders.co.uk/Desig
n/Assets/images/vervain%201.jpg
http://www.cees.iupui.edu/Research/Restoration/
ARBOR/Images/Flora_Fauna/2002-0713_Hoary-Vervain-Blooms.JPG