Duration: Perennial

Nativity: Native

Lifeform: Forb/Herb

General: Perennial herbs, 15-60 cm tall, from a taproot; stems 2-8, erect, densely hirsutulous and minutely stipitate-glandular.

Leaves: Opposite, basally attenuate to subpetiolate, clustered near base of plant; blades oblanceloate, 6-10 cm long, with coarsely serrate margins; surfaces densely hirsutulous and minutely stipitate-glandular.

Flowers: Small, purple, in 1-3 slender elongate spikes per stem; each flower subtended by an ovate bract, 3-4 mm long and shorter than the calyx; calyx 4 mm long, densely hairy and minutely stipitate glandular, with 5 triangular lobes; corollas salverform, blue to purple or lavender, the tubes 4-5 mm long, exceeding the calyx, the limbs 5-9 mm in diameter.

Fruits: Nutlets 2 mm long.

Ecology: Found on rocky slopes, limestone flats, stream beds, sandy washes, roadsides, disturbed sites, grassy hills, riparian brush and woodland, from 3,000-6,000 ft (914-1829 m); flowers Mar-Nov.

Distribution: NM and TX; south to n MEX (Chihuahua, Coahuila).

Notes: This taxon is commonly classified as a variety of V. neomexicana. However in his recent treatment (2010) Nesom elevates it to species status, arguing that "Verbena hirtella is morphologically and geographically discontinuous from V. neomexicana. They differ in vestiture, leaf morphology, corolla size, and nutlet morphology." Restricted to New Mexico, Texas, neighboring Mexico, V. hirtella is easily and reliably distinguished from typical V. neomexicana by its leaves, which are long and narrow with toothed edges while V. neomexicana has pinnately lobed leaves. Allred and Ivey (2012) treat this taxon as V. hirtella.

Ethnobotany: Unknown

Etymology: Verbena is the Latin word for vervain; hirtella means a little bit hairy.

Synonyms: Verbena hirtella

Editor: AHazelton 2015