Verbena urticifolia is an annual or perennial herb, erect, to 1.5 m tall, single stemmed, usually hairy, often branched from base.
Leaves opposite, broadly lance-shaped to egg-shaped, to 8-20 cm long, margin, coarsely, often doubly, toothed.
Flowers white, small, tubular, slightly irregular in long, thin, sparsely flowered spikes; blooms June-Aug.
Fruit dry, small, 0.2 cm.
Wetland status: FACU.
Frequency in NYC: Occasional.
Origin: Native.
Habitat: Edges of wetlands, open areas or part-shade in good soil.

Verbena urticifolia. © Thomas G. Barnes @ USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database/Barnes, T.G., and S.W. Francis. 2004. Wildflowers and ferns of Kentucky. University Press of Kentucky (Both Accessed 5/2014).
Notes: Seeds eaten by songbirds, plants occasionally eaten by rabbits (Martin et. al. 1951).