Moricandia arvensis, the purple mistress, is a species of flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae. It has a broadly western Mediterranean distribution, from the Canary Islands to northern Africa including Mauritania and Chad, the Iberian Peninsula, Italy and as far as Greece, and has been introduced to France, Corsica, and Sardinia. It has an intermediate C3–C4 carbon fixation system, known as C2 photosynthesis.
A very branched herb from the base, which grows up to half a metre in height and which lives on the edges of roads, generally looking for warm areas. It is characterised by its glaucous leaves, with an entire margin and a heart-shaped base that embraces the stem. The flowers are reddish or violet in colour. The fruits are long siliques that are arranged perpendicular to the stem. It flowers in the second half of spring.
