This delicate, ground-hugging annual features square, trailing stems lined with stalkless, oval green leaves arranged in opposite pairs. It is famous for its small, five-petalled flowers that are typically a brilliant salmon-red or scarlet with a purple centre.
Interesting Facts
Its famous weather-related nicknames come from the flowers’ remarkable ability to close their petals instantly when atmospheric pressure drops, predicting cloudy skies or approaching rain. Culturally, it is legendary as the official emblem of Baroness Orczy’s fictional hero, The Scarlet Pimpernel, who left a drawing of the tiny red flower as his signature at adventure scenes.
Importance to Wildlife
While its blossoms open only in bright, direct sun, they provide a valuable daytime pollen and nectar source for small solitary bees, hoverflies, and thrips. Its low, creeping growth habit creates dense mats that serve as crucial micro-habitats and humid ground cover for beneficial orchard predators like ground beetles, money spiders, and small frogs.
Advice
You’ll need to look hard to find the Scarlet Pimpernel since flowers are really very small; just a few millimetres across. Don’t the touch the plant; it can make you ill if consumed.