Βερόνικα η στίλβουσα
Etymology of Veronica polita: The genus's name "Veronica" derives from Saint Veronica, the woman who gave Jesus a cloth to wipe his face while carrying the cross on the way to Calvary, and so named because the markings on some species supposedly resemble those on her sacred handkerchief. The epithet "polita", which is Latin and means ''polished", refers to the bright blue color of its petals.
There are nine Veronica species/taxa growing on their own in the Cypriot habitat.
Veronica polita is encountered almost all around the island except for the northeastern part, up to an altitude of 1700 metres. It primarily grows on low grassland. The specimens in the pictures come from Pano Arodes (Pafos district) and Pano Platres (Lemesos district). The species in Cyprus has a long flowering period, between December and June.
How to identify Veronica polita:
Veronica polita is similar to Veronica persica. Their differences are the following:
Veronica persica's lobes of the capsule are strongly divergent; its pedicels are up to 3 cm long. Veronica polita's lobes of the capsule are not markedly divergent; its pedicels are about 1-1.2 cm long.
