Veronica surculosa

The Veronica surculosa is a small speedwell of Turkish origin with a trailing and vigorous growth habit. Its prostrate branches are covered with small light green to gray leaves. Semi-evergreen in winter, this perennial plant blooms with blue-violet flowers in late spring and early summer. Alpine in its native habitat, it thrives in full sun or partial shade and can be planted in rock gardens, borders, or containers.

The Veronica surculosa is a perennial plant with rooting stems from the family Scrophulariaceae. Very similar to Veronica cuneifolia, this species is native to Turkey, where it grows on limestone slopes and cliffs between 2130 and 3050 m in altitude. It grows slowly, forming numerous short and prostrate branches on the ground. The foliage does not exceed 5 cm in height, with thin stems resembling stolons. Each stem produces roots at the nodes, allowing the plant to cover the ground over a minimum surface area of 40 cm in diameter, and even more over time. The foliage, a fairly light green color, is semi-evergreen and composed of clustered leaves, 5 to 10 mm long, oblong to lanceolate or almost spatulate, usually strongly revolute, densely glandular and pubescent. The flowers are blue or violet, 7 to 11 mm in diameter, arranged in racemes. They appear in early summer.

The Veronica surculosa can be planted in rock gardens, slopes, flower beds, borders, or as a foreground plant in flower beds. Very resilient, it covers the ground everywhere, even in unfavorable conditions. In containers and hanging baskets, it can be planted at the base of taller and more upright perennials, forming a trailing carpet along the edges of the pot. Along a pathway, it can be planted in mass. In poor soil, it can be paired with thymes to replace the lawn on a small area with light foot traffic. It can tolerate competition from moderately strong roots. It can be paired with chamomiles, Antennaria dioica 'Rubra', and Pulsatillas.