Scoparia dulcis L.

  • Authority

    Acevedo-Rodríguez, Pedro & collaborators. 1996. Flora of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 78: 1-581.

  • Family

    Scrophulariaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Scoparia dulcis L.

  • Description

    Species Description - Erect subshrub 0.4-1 m tall, branching along main stem or less often many-branched from a subwoody taproot; stems cylindrical, 6-ribbed, puberulent, especially at nodes. Leaf blades 1.3-4 x 0.3-1 cm, elliptic to blanceolate or obovate, chartaceous, glabrous, glandular-punctate, the apex acute or obtuse, the base cuneate, the margins serrate above the middle; petioles 0-3 mm long. Flowers solitary or paired in leaf axils; pedicels 5-8 mm long, slender. Sepals 4, ovate, 1.5-2 mm long, ciliate; corolla white, 3.5-4 mm long, the tube with long ascending hairs at base, the lobes 4, reflexed, oblong and rounded at apex; stamens 4, the filaments ca. 1 mm long, pinkish-tinged, the anthers ca. 1 mm long, white; ovary ovoid, glabrous, green, the style filiform, elongate, white, the stigma capitate. Capsule ovoid, 3-3.5 mm long, with a persistent style. Seeds numerous ca. 0.5 mm long, reticulate.

  • Discussion

    Common name: teeth bush.

  • Distribution

    A common weed of open, disturbed areas, especially along roadsides and along trails. Bordeaux (A3824), Fortsberg (A2424). Also on St. Croix, St. Thomas, and Tortola; a pantropical weed.

    Tortola Virgin Islands South America| Saint Thomas Virgin Islands of the United States South America| Saint Croix Virgin Islands of the United States South America|