About Verbena bracteata Cav. ex Lag. & Rodr.
Verbena bracteata Cav. ex Lag. & Rodr. is a species of verbena, commonly known as bracted vervain, bigbract verbena, prostrate vervain, and carpet vervain. It is native to North America, and is widespread across most of the continent; it is not found in northern Canada or southern Mexico. It grows in many habitat types, and is especially common in disturbed areas. It typically blooms from May through October. This plant is an annual or perennial herb that grows several hairy, spreading stems up to 30 centimeters in length, forming a low mat along the ground. Its hairy leaves are toothed or lobed. The inflorescence is a dense spike of flowers, marked by long, pointed, leaflike bracts that each reach up to 8 millimeters long. Each small tubular flower is around half a centimeter wide, and ranges in color from white to pale purple.