Scarlet Pimpernel |
Anagallis arvensis |
Taxonomic note: am taking this to include the subspecies sometimes separated as A foemina. The pictures are ssp arvensis, and the local plants are (or were) almost certainly the same.
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Photo © Jackie Miles |
Rare weed of cultivated ground, possibly no longer present due to cessation of arable farming. Flower diameter c 4-10 mm ID: Not likely to be mistaken for anything else when showing red flowers. The flowers can also be blue, mauve or pink, but are still very distinctive. Stems square-sided, leaves shaped like those of Chickweed, opposite, unstalked, 3-veined, with black gland-dots beneath. Petals, little longer than sepals, fringed with minute gland-hairs. Other features: Flowers solitary in leaf axils. Usually annual, can be perennial. |
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Photo © Jackie Miles |