Common Field-speedwell - Veronica persica

Low to short, generally sprawling, hairy plant. Stems branched. Leaves short stalked, oval-triangular and coarsely toothed, alternate except for the lowermost. Flowers bright blue, 8 to 12 mm the lowermost petal often white. Solitary on slender stalks at the base of the upper leaves. Capsule 2 lobed, borne on recurved stalk, with the lobes diverging.

Other speedwells, especially V agrestis which grows in similar habitats; V polita may also be found but is rare in VC55

Annual, flowers solitary in leaf-axils (i.e not in spikes or racemes) and usually with brighter blue flowers than V agrestis.  Key difference is the capsules, which have apices diverging at right angles or thereabouts.

This is difficult to identify with confidence from a close-up photo of the flowers.  Photo of general habit and close-up of capsules needed

Cultivated ground, gardens, and arable fields.

Throughout the year.

Annual.

Very common throughout Britain.

Very common in Leicestershire and Rutland. In the 1979 Flora survey of Leicestershire it was found in 521 of the 617 tetrads.

In the current Checklist (Jeeves, 2011) it is listed as Alien (neophyte); frequent