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Key to Verbenaceae

Verbenaceae

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1 Plants woody (shrubs, small trees or lianas); fruits fleshy or drupes enclosed within a hardened calyx.
  2 Plants lianas; fruit a drupe enclosed wtihin a persistent hardened calyx; [waif, FL]
  2 Plants shrubs or trees; fruits fleshy; [collectively widespread, native and non-native]
    3 Inflorescence a drooping raceme; [tribe Citharexyleae]
      4 Leaf margins entire; flowers white or whitish
      4 Leaf margins serrate (sometimes minutely so, rarely entire); flowers violet
    3 Inflorescence an erect head or spike; [tribe Lantaneae]
1 Plants herbs (except subshrubs in Lippia); fruits dry.
        5 Flowers and fruits embedded in a thickened, somewhat fleshy rachis
        5 Flowers and fruits not embedded in a thickened, somewhat fleshy rachis.
          6 Flowers borne on short pedicels; fruiting calyx inflated and densely uncinate-hispidulous; [rare native, s. FL]
          6 Flowers sessile; fruiting calyx not inflated nor uncinate; [widespread natives and non-natives].
             7 Inflorescence axillary (the stems of inflorescence arising from axils of main stem); [tribe Lantaneae].
               8 Stems woody to suffrutescent, trailing and sometimes re-rooting; hairs simple
             7 Inflorescence terminal (arising from top of main stem); [tribe Verbeneae].
                 9 Styles > 6 mm long; calyx 8-10 mm long, longer than the fruit; corolla salverform
                 9 Styles < 3 mm long; calyx 2-4 mm long, often shorter than the fruit; corolla funnelform