Anagallis Arvensis, Scarlet Pimpernel



Common name:
Scarlet pimpernel
Scientific name:
Anagallis arvensis
Main flower color:
Range:
England, Wales and Ireland, and coastal regions of southern Scotland
Height:
A few cm
Habitat:
Fields, waste and disturbed ground
Flowers:
Up to 15 mm in diameter; five flat, ovate petals, all within the same plane, and a narrow-toothed calyx. Petals are usually orange, reddish at the base, but can also be blue; this is ssp foemina. At the centre are five stamens with red filaments and yellow anthers, growing from a clump of short, white hairs. Flowers are solitary, at the leaf nodes, attached by thin stalks
Leaves:
Opposite, ovate, hairless, stalkless, with palmate veins
Season:
June to August
Rarity:
★★★★