Legousia speculum-veneris

Legousia speculum-veneris, the looking glass or large Venus's-looking-glass, is an annual ornamental plant in the family Campanulaceae (bellflowers). It blooms from June to August and is native to the Mediterranean region.

Characteristics
Legousia petal bases are straight (not bell-based as Campanula).

L. speculum-veneris flowers have a 5-part calyx under the flower-base with long very narrow arms, roughly equal to the petals and to the ovary (which appears at first like a stalk to the flower and in maturing swells).

The flowers lack the broad blue central band of L. pentagonia (found from Greece eastwards), which has comparatively shortened calyx arms.

However the Eastern Mediterranean has forms transitional between L. speculum-veneris and L. pentagonia suggestive of gene flow.

Synonyms

 * Campanula speculum-veneris     L.             – Sp. Pl.: 168 (1753), basionym
 * Legousia arvensis              Durande        – Fl. Bourgogne 1: 37 (1782), nom. superfl.
 * Prismatocarpus speculum-veneris (L.) L'Hér.   – Sert. Angl.: 3 (1789)
 * Campanula pulchella            Salisb.        – Prodr. Stirp. Chap. Allerton: 127 (1796), nom. superfl.
 * Legousia durandei              Delarbre       – Fl. Auvergne, ed. 2: 45 (1800), nom. superfl.
 * Campanula arvensis             Pers.          – Syn. Pl. 1: 193 (1805)
 * Prismatocarpus hirtus          Ten.           – Fl. Napol. 1(Prodr.): xvi (1811)
 * Campanula hirta                (Ten.) Schult. – J.J.Roemer & J.A.Schultes, Syst. Veg. 5: 153 (1819)
 * Campanula cordata              Vis.           – Stirp. Dalmat. Spec.: 5 (1826)
 * Specularia speculum            A.DC.          — Monogr. Campan.: 346 (1830)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris    (L.) A.DC.     – Monogr. Campan.: 346 (1830)
 * Legousia speculum              Fisch. ex A.DC. – Monogr. Campan.: 347 (1830)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris var. calycina    A.DC.        – Monogr. Campan.: 347 (1830)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris var. libanotica  A.DC.        – Monogr. Campan.: 347 (1830)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris var. pubescens   A.DC.        – Monogr. Campan.: 347 (1830)
 * Prismatocarpus cordatus                          (Vis.) Rchb. – Fl. Germ. Excurs.: 858 (1831)
 * Specularia cordata                               (Vis.) Heynh. – Nom. Bot. Hort.: 689 (1841)
 * Specularia vulgaris                              Kitt.        – Taschenb. Fl. Deutschl., ed. 2: 483 (1843), nom. superfl.
 * Prismatocarpus speculum-veneris var. hirtus  (Ten.) K.Koch – Linnaea 19: 30 (1846)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris var. stricta     Griseb.      – Spic. Fl. Rumel. 2: 279 (1846)
 * Specularia arvensis                              Montandon    – F.Friche-Joset, Syn. Fl. Jura, ed. 2: 156 (1868)
 * Campanula trigona                                Ehrenb. ex Boiss. – Fl. Orient. 3: 959 (1875)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris var. racemosa    Boiss.           – Fl. Orient. 3: 959 (1875)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris var. cordata     (Vis.) Nyman     – Consp. Fl. Eur.: 483 (1879)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris var. hirta       (Ten.) Nyman     – Consp. Fl. Eur.: 483 (1879)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris subsp. hirta     (Ten.) Arcang.   – Comp. Fl. Ital.: 450 (1882)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris f. plena         Voss             – Vilm. Blumengärtn. ed. 3, 1: 563 (1894)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris f. procumbens    Voss             – Vilm. Blumengärtn. ed. 3, 1: 563 (1894)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris var. procumbens  (Voss) auct.     – Rev. Hort. 1897: 254 (1897)
 * Specularia speculum-veneris subvar. pubescens (A.DC.) Rouy    – G.Rouy & J.Foucaud, Fl. France 10: 57 (1908)
 * Specularia polypiflora                           Davidov          – Trav. Soc. Bulg. Sci. Nat. 8: 92 (1915)
 * Specularia hirta                                 (Ten.) Gand.     – Fl. Cret.: 69 (1916)
 * Legousia speculum-veneris f. calycina        (A.DC.) Hayek    – Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. 30(2): 551 (1930)
 * Legousia speculum-veneris f. polypiflora     (Davidov) Hayek  – Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. 30(2): 551 (1930)
 * Legousia speculum-veneris f. stricta         (Griseb.) Hayek  – Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. 30(2): 551 (1930)
 * Githopsis latifolia                              Eastw.           – Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci. IV, 20: 154 (1931)