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Pasture Weed Watch
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Scarlet
Pimpernel
Why is it a weed?
It can be a competitor in
gardens and crops.
Where is it found?
Nationwide
Is it toxic?
Yes, but stock tend to avoid it.
Alternative uses?
None really.
milton munro
I
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t doesn’t take too much to get my
little agronomists going. A whiff of a
new weed, bug or animal and we are
off. Sometimes we find something
that really fires them up, sending them
on an all-consuming drive for more
information, and usually (much to their
mother’s dismay), it’s the mucky side that
gets them going. You know, poo, pee and
guts. They love the vets I work with.
This time all it took to send the middle
agronomist off was a funny name.
“This weed has a pretty flower Dad,
what is it?”
“Well Mason, that’s scarlet pimpernel,”
I said with a ridiculous French accent. The
eyes went wide, the mouth twitched, and
BOOM, he was off to inform the world of
his amazing discovery. In honour of his
enthusiasm I thought I would share this
weed with you.
Scarlet pimpernel (say it aloud with
a French accent, go on!) or Anagallis
arvensis is an annual weed found in
gardens and crops right across New
Zealand. It’s native to Europe, North
Africa and Western Asia, and has
effectively spread its way around most
Milton Munro is a soil and plant
scientist for rural supply company
PGG Wrightson. He looks at common
pasture weeds you’ll find on your
block and how to deal with them.
of the world. Scarlet
pimpernel is a member of
the Primulaceae family of
plants, otherwise known as
the primrose family, which
contains a number of wellloved garden plants and
wildflowers. It’s known by a
few other names, including
poorman’s barometer,
shepherd’s weather glass
and shepherd’s clock which
all relate to the ability of the plant to close
its flowers when atmospheric pressure
decreases, heralding bad weather
approaching. Neat eh?
As a plant, scarlet pimpernel is actually
quite toxic. In the right conditions it can
even become fatally toxic to livestock,
but thankfully it is quite unpalatable and
poisonings are very rare.
I can’t write an article about scarlet
pimpernel without mentioning The
Scarlet Pimpernel and Sir Percy, hero of
numerous books and plays. The English
Baron led a double life: dim-witted fop
in everyday life, but secretly a master
swordsman and escape artist, rescuing
French nobles during the revolution.
After every rescue he would leave a small
card showing a small flower, the scarlet
pimpernel.
Scarlet pimpernel is an easy weed to
identify in the field. It produces weak
prostrate, square-shaped stems that trail
across the ground and can grow up and
over other plants in the field. It produces
small green paired leaves that attach
to the stem directly - no stalks. On the
underside of the leaf you will often find
some small black dots (glands).
What really sets this weed apart is its
striking flower. The term scarlet isn’t quite
accurate - it’s more of an orange-red - but
nevertheless it is a distinctive and striking
flower. Interestingly, scarlet pimpernel
can strike and grow at any time during
the year if temperatures are conducive to
growth.
How to control it
Scarlet pimpernel is a very easy weed to
control. Its weak stem means it is very
susceptible to physical removal so pulling
the stems gives great control and is the
best option in the home garden.
When it appears in crops and it’s not
appropriate to pull it out, then spraying
is the best bet. Thankfully it is susceptible
to nearly every chemical out there, the
only exception is the more specialised
products, which have no effect. n
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