Hebe speciosa

Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture

Veronica speciosa, R. Cunn. Stout half-hardy shrub, 2-5 ft. high, with stout, spreading leafy branches and crimson-purple fls.: lvs. 2-4 in. long, obovate or obovate-oblong, subsessile, dark green, thick, smooth, glossy, entire, rounded at apex: racemes axillary and opposite near tips of branches, stout, dense-fld.: fls. large, 1/3 in. diam., purple-crimson: caps. more than twice as long as the calyx. Summer. New Zeal. B.M. 4057. F.S. 1:19. R.H. 1844:60. H.U. 6, p. 349. Var. corymbifera, Hort., is offered in the trade as growing 2 ft. high with rosy fls. Var. rubra, Hort., is offered in the trade. Var. variegata, Hort., is offered as a form growing 6 ft. high with large lvs. variegated with creamy white: fls. light blue. Probably really the variegated form of V. Andersonii. Intro. into S. Calif.—V. imperialis, Hort. (V. speciosa var. imperialis, Boncharlat), seems to be merely a garden name for the true species. F.S. 22: 2317. V. speciosa hybridizes freely and there are several garden hybrids of which the best known is V. Andersonii, Lindl. & Paxt. (V. salicifolia x V. speciosa. V. speciosa var. Andersonii, Hort. V. Hendersonii, Hort.). Fig. 3915, is grown in the greenhouse and is also used as a bedding plant. It grows 18 in. high: lvs. oblong, sessile, entire, thickish: racemes axillary: fls. bluish violet. F.S. 7:658. J.F. 1:103. G.W. 5, p. 20. Var. variegata, Hort., has the foliage variegated with creamy white. G.L. 18:77. Gn. W. 23:829. The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.