Anchusa capensis, the Cape forget-me-not, grows in most of southern and central South Africa. It is often found in areas where natural vegetation has been disturbed, such as roadsides and fallow agricultural land on dry, sandy ground. It is also a notable item in the Namaqualand spring display.

This is a strong growing annual herb up to 1 m tall. It has also been described as being perennial (Bond and Goldblatt, 1984). The much branched and tall stems taper to a notably thinner form higher up on the plant, compared to the basal ones. Stems are red to purple when young. The sessile leaves are narrow and hairy. The spring flowers are borne on thin upper branches. They are five-petalled, bright blue with whitish centres. There are hairy scales inside the flower around the stamens and style (Manning, 2009; www.plantzafrica.com).