Glandularia tenera (Spreng.) Cabrera

Echeverría, María L., Alonso, Sara I. & Comparatore, Viviana M., 2017, Survey of the vascular plants of Sierra Chica, the untouched area of the Paititi Natural Reserve (southeastern Tandilia mountain range, Buenos Aires province, Argentina), Check List 13 (6), pp. 1003-1036 : 1029

Glandularia tenera (Spreng.) Cabrera

Figure 41

Glandularia tenera (Spreng.) Cabrera (1953) : 398 — Flora Argentina

(2017); Tropicos (2017).

Glandularia pulchella (Sweet) Tronc. var. gracilior Tronc. (1964) :

470 — Cabrera (1965b): 139.

Verbena tenera Spreng. (1825a) : 750— Tropicos (2017).

Hemicryptophytes; native with wide distribution in the Southern Cone Region of South America. Critically Endangered, reasons unknown ( Delucchi 2006).

Characteristics. Prostrate herb with strigose pubescence in stems and floral branches. Leaves briefly petiolate with petiole less than 10 mm. Leaf blade of 15–20 mm long and 15 mm wide, 3- to 5-dissected to bipinnatisect, segments linear to narrowly ovate and both surfaces strigose; the abaxial surface presents glands. Inflorescences: dense multifloral spikes arranged in monobotrya or pleiobotrya with frondose paracladia; peduncles 15–20 mm long. Floral bracts 3.5–4.5 mm long, ovate, with acute apex and strigose pubescence with patelliform glands; calyx 8–9 mm long, strigose with some patelliform glands; corolla 12–13 mm long, externally glabrous, lilac to violet. Fruit: cluses of 4–6 mm long, 1.5–2 mm wide, with rostrate apex.

Comments. This is a frequent species in the study area. It grows in full sunlight conditions in shallow soils on grassland slopes and at the summit. Glandularia tenera and G. peruviana (L.) Small, both commonly in southern Buenos Aires province. G. peruviana has leaves entire and the corolla red.