Bush Verbena
Citharexylum flabellifolium
Family: Verbenaceae
A loosely branched shrub with stiff, angular stems, to about six feet tall and wide. The stems are clothed with fuzzy, dark green leaves with purple highlights. It flowers profusely throughout much of the growing season with 1/2" wide lavender blooms along the stems. The flowers are followed by purple, fleshy berries.
The long blooming season and the numerous butterflys attracted to it make this a rewarding plant to grow.
Fruits are probably edible for people, and definitely are for birds. The flowers attract numerous pollinators.
he generic name Citharexylum comes from the Greek words kithara meaning "lyre" and xylon meaning "wood". This refers to the use of the wood from the Citharexylum plant in the sounding boards of string instruments. The species, flabellifolium, is a Latin term that means "with fan-shaped leaves". There are 81 Species of Citherexylum which are native to the Americas, ranging from southern Florida and Texas in the United States to Argentina.
Bush Verbena is native to the coast of Sonora, from Kino Bay, south, and a few spots in Baja California Sur.
Typical shape of bush verbena, photo by Sue Carnahan, iNaturalist
Plants can be utterly loaded with flowers, especially during the rains, photo by Carianne Funicelli, iNaturalist
Fruits follow the flowers, photo by Joel Bojórquez Sauceda, iNaturalist