| Blue pimpernel | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Blue pimpernel (Anagallis monelli), the Skylover cultivar) | |
 | |
| Orange colour form of the Blue Pimpernel near el Perelló (Catalonia), Spain | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Ericales |
| Family: | Primulaceae |
| Genus: | Lysimachia |
| Species: | L. monelli |
| Binomial name | |
| Lysimachia monelli (L.) U. Manns & Anderb. | |
Lysimachia monelli, the blue pimpernel or garden pimpernel [1] (formerly known as Anagallis monelli) is a species of flowering plant in the family Primulaceae, native to the Mediterranean region (in the Iberian Peninsula, Northwest Africa, Corsica, Sicily and the Balearic Islands [2] ). It is not to be confused with Lysimachia foemina , which has very similar blue flowers, but broader leaves and can be found also in colder climates. In a comparison of DNA sequences, L. monelli was shown to be most closely related to L. foemina. [3] The latter had been thought by many to be closest to L. arvensis , and some authors had even included L. foemina as a subspecies of L. arvensis.[ citation needed ] The three species were among several transferred from Anagallis to Lysimachia in a 2009 paper. [4]
Lysimachia monelli is a low-growing perennial with trailing stems. Wild specimens have blue or orange coloured flowers and are not sympatric with the blue-flowered plants growing natively in southern Spain and the orange in Morocco and southern Italy. A red variant was also developed by breeding at the University of New Hampshire. The orange-coloured flowers have a higher concentration of pelargonidin pigment, while blue flowers have a higher concentration of malvidin. The red-coloured flowers are due to the relative concentrations of delphinidin and malvidin pigments. In addition to the blue, orange and red forms, a white form of the flower also exists. [5] [6]
Although this is a perennial, in cultivation in temperate regions this plant is often grown as an annual. As Anagallis monellii it has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. [7]
