Verbenaceae

Stachytarpheta cayennensis

Common Names: Snakeweed Synonyms: Stachytarpheta australis

Plant Form: Subshrub. Size: Up to 1.5 m tall. Stem: Square in cross-section when young. Leaves: Opposite, undivided, egg-shaped to oval, up to 9 cm long, notched to toothed edges, on 1.5 cm long stalks. With densely hairy underside. Flowers: Usually whitish, tubular with five lobes, on long, thin, curved spikes above the mass of leaves. Fruit and Seeds: Up to 6 mm long, dark brown to blackish, splitting into two one-seeded fragments. Habitat: Forests, bushland, roadsides, disturbed areas, streams, gardens, plantations, pastures. Distinguishing Features: Leaf undersides densely hairy, whereas Cayenne snakeweed (Stachytarpheta cayennensis) and Jamaica snakeweed (S. jamaicensis) are hairless or sparsely hairy on veins.