Scarlet Pimpernel
Poor Man's Weatherglass
Anagallis arvensis
Photographed along Mesquite Wash, Maricopa Co., Arizona. April 2008.
ANNUAL: Low-growing, spring annual with rather fleshy stems and leaves.
LEAVES: Leaves are broadly elyptic and opposite and
sessile on the stems (two at each stem node).
RANGE: This non-native plant has found its way into riparian habitats
and larger washes where it tends to grow in damp sand.
FRUIT: Dry capsules which open like a cap (circumscissile).
FLOWERS: Five petals can range in color from usually orange or salmon in wild-type
populations to red or even blue in varieties. The five stamens are each
opposite a petal. Blooms mid to late spring in the desert.
UNARMED No spines/thorns.