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The separation of male and female phases in hermaphroditic flowers, dichogamy, is a common occurrence that can benefit the plant through either reproductive assurance or the avoidance of selfing. When the female phase comes first, this is referred to as protogyny. One extreme form of protogyny, precocious protogyny, occurs when the stigma is presented above the apex of the bud. If such stigmas are receptive to pollen and have pollen deposited on them prior to the opening of the flower, then the precocious protogyny can be considered functional. Functional precocious protogyny was investigated in four species of sun hebes ( Veronica  sect.  Hebe ) in natural populations and in the glasshouse via observations and experiments. Three species ( Veronica lavaudiana ,  V. maccaskillii , and  V. raoulii ) exhibited functional precocious protogyny, with 7–17% of deposited pollen being received and germinating while flowers were still in bud. In  V. lavaudiana , both precocious stylar exsertion and a delay in the dehiscence of anthers after flower opening contributed to flowers being solely in the female phase for much of their lifespan. Sun hebes are visited by soft-wing flower beetles (Melyridae). Those with functional precocious protogyny exhibit compact inflorescences that the beetles use as walking platforms, resulting in imprecise pollination. Overall, the timing and amount of pollen deposited on stigmas within this group of sun hebes suggest that this form of pollination may have contributed to the evolution of precocious protogyny via an increase in the amount of time during which stigmas were available to receive pollen, while simultaneously reducing the amount of selfing.

Functional precocious protogyny in New Zealand sun hebes ( Veronica sect. Hebe , Plantaginaceae)