Japanese name: ザクロソウ（柘榴草） Scientific name:Mollugo stricta
[Overview]
An annual found in fields and along roadsides.
The stem is slender and ridged, branches freely, and reaches about 30 cm in height.
Leaves are simple, in pseudo-whorls of 3–5, lanceolate, 1.5–4.5 cm long, and glossy.
There is one distinct vein.
Cymes emerge at the stem tips and leaf axils and bear sparse flowers.
The flowers have no petals; the five white to yellowish green sepals look like petals.
There are slender flower stalks.
The fruit is a spherical capsule.
The seeds are kidney-shaped, reddish brown, and covered all over with fine projections.
[Notes]
The Japanese name is said to compare the leaf shape to pomegranate leaves.
