1. Anagallis L.

Plants annual. Leaves alternate or opposite, sessile or nearly so. Leaf blades unlobed, the margins entire, the surfaces glabrous. Inflorescences axillary, of solitary flowers. Sepals distinct. Corollas, deeply (4)5(6)-lobed, saucer-shaped, the tube short, the limb spreading, shallowly lobed, variously colored. Stamens 5, the filaments attached in the corolla tube, pubescent or glabrous. Ovary ovoid, the style linear, the stigma minute, capitate. Fruits capsules, globose, membranous, with circumscissile dehiscence. Seeds numerous, angular. About 28 species, South America, Europe, Africa; introduced nearly worldwide.