Veronicastrum virginicum is a perennial herb to 2 m tall, erect, unbranched except inflorescence.
Leaves whorled 3-6, lance-shaped, sometimes hairy below, margin sharply, finely toothed, tip long-pointed, base tapered to stalk 1 cm long or less.
Flowers white, 0.9 cm long, tubular, petal lobes 4, much shorter than tube, stamens 2, longer than petals, giving inflorescence a somewhat fuzzy, bottle-brush appearance; inflorescence of spikes at top of stem, 1-several, to 15 cm, densely flowered; blooms June-Aug.
Fruit a narrow, elliptic, capsule to 0.5 cm long, opening by 4 slits to release numerous tiny seeds, persistent into winter (Levine 1995).
Wetland status: FACU.
Frequency in NYC: Very infrequent.
Origin: Native.
Habitat: Open woods.