For Saint Veronica, said to have given Jesus a cloth to wipe his face on the way to Calvary, and named because of a supposed resemblence between markings on some Veronica species and her sacred handkerchief
Species
officinalis
Latin for “of the shops, sold in the marketplace, official”
Common speedwell is well established in North America, but it is a European import that escaped
cultivation,
originally from Europe and Asia. It occupied an area at the edge of my lawn until goldenrods eventually
got the upper hand.
Identification: These plants are inconspicuous, forming mats by creeping, 2-10″ (5-25 cm) in height. Leaves are ovate to elliptic, narrowing at the base, ½-2″ (1.3-5 cm) long, opposite, and toothed. Flowers are
bilaterally symmetrical, on spikes (racemes); flowers appear only on the upper portions
of the flower stems. Flowers are irregular in shape, ⅛″ (5 mm) in size, and pale violet in color.
They appear from April to July.
Medical: Speedwell is used in a bitter, tangy tea as an expectorant; also as a diaphoretic,
diuretic, and general tonic. It contains aucubin, a glycoside with anti-inflammatory, diuretic and liver
protective actions. Studies of its liver-protective functions appear promising.
Like other common plants, it has been used for many other purposes which have not been
confirmed with studies and are now generally discredited: abdominal
complaints; as a general cure-all; a cancer treatment; for treatment of eczema; to speed healing of
minor wounds; as a "blood purifier;" a kidney stimulant; an antiasthmatic; and
a treatment for small pox and measles.
It contains vitamins E, K, and C; antioxidant phenols; β-sisterol,
sometimes used to reduce cholesterol; and
omega-3 fatty acids.