Nomenclature

Species name:

Anagallis arvensis   L.

Author(s):

Carl von Linné
   Sweden, 1707-1778

Common name:

Pimpernel
Scarlet Pimpernel
Blue Pimpernel

Maltese name:

Harira kahla
Harira hamra

Plant Family:

Primulaceae   (Primrose Family)

Name Derivation:

Anagallis = from two Greek words, ana, "again," and agallein, "to delight in," since the flowers open each time the sun strikes them and so they could be enjoyed every new day (Greek);

arvensis = of the fields, referring to the most common habitat of this plant (Latin).

Synonyms:

Anagallis arvensis subsp. arvensis

Remarks:

There are two closely related species, previously classified as subspecies of the taxon Anagallis arvensis L. . These are A. arvensis (A. arvensis subsp. arvensis) and A. foemina (A. arvensis subsp. foemina) The latter is distinguished by having the flower pedicels equal or shorter from the subtending leaflet (see pic) and the corolla is concealed by the calyx in the bud stage. Additionally, A. foemina is described to have a blue corolla while A. arvensis can be blue, scarlet or pale red. Today, they are accepted as two different species.

Plant Description

Life Cycle:

Annual or Biennial

Habitat:

Waste and cultivated places. Less often on soily garigue.

Sources in Malta:

Common everywhere, mostly near fields, wasteground, countryside lanes, and soily garigue.

Plant Height:

5-50cm (Stem Length)

Flowering Time:

Feb-Jul

This plant is described as annual, biennial or as a short lived annual in some descriptions. This probably depends on the habitat and climatic conditions the plant grows in. In Malta, most plants are annual since they don't survive the long arid summer months.

The ascending plant forms quadrangular stems (= having a square-shaped cross section) that subdivides in many branches and sub-branches which could be either single, or often as an opposite pair, or in whorls of 3 sub-branches. Branching always subtended by an axillary leaf. Leaves are usually found in opposite sessile pairs but sometimes as whorls of 3. The leaves are about 12mm long and 6mm wide and generally have a lance or oval shape, with the upper ones being more narrow. The margin is smooth. The main veins (3 to 5) of the leaf blade are seen diverging from the leaf base outwards to the margins. Some reports mentions that the surfaces possess scattered glands.

The flowers, despite small, are considered as conspicuous by many. This is partly because the plant produces many of them, and partly because of the intense colours they posses, such as deep blue, scarlet or salmon-pink. Flowers have a long petiole arising from the axil of the leaf. An important characteristic that distinguish this species from a closely related one (Anagallis arvensis) is the length of the petiole. If this is longer from the subtending leaf, the species is A. arvensis, otherwise it is A. foemina.

The calyx is a simple actinomorphic structure composed of 5 equal, narrow, teeth-like sepals. The 5 rounded petals forms a flat-open corolla in full sunshine and a cup-shaped structure when sunlight is not intense. There are 3 colour forms all belonging to the same taxon. In Malta, the most common is the blue, followed by the scarlet colour and leaving the salmon-pink colour as a rather rare form. In all cases, the base of each petal have a deep red-purple colour that collectively forms a small ring at the centre. The diameter of the corolla is normally between 3-8 mm, but 'giant' specimen with 10mm and even 13mm diameter has been found.

The reproductive parts consists of 5 erect stamens with a firm, reddish, white-haired filament and a swollen anther with yolk-yellow pollen. The female reproductive part is a small, central, spherical ovary with a tiny style (3mm long) and unspecialised stigma. The fertilized ovary develops into a fruit capsule having a perfectly-shaped spherical structure with the persistent style at the top. The fruit capsule is 4 to 6mm across, green and sometimes having 5 reddish vertical lines spaced evenly along the fruit wall.

The capsule opens along the wall circumference, somewhere across the central part of the fruit, hence as a lid (pyxis) This is described as a circumscissile dehiscence. The capsule holds numerous seeds (20-40) which are brown when fully ripe.

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