Purple Loosestrife
Scientific Name: Lythrum salicaria
Category: plant
Brief Description
A striking wetland perennial herb with tall spikes of magenta-pink flowers, often found invading roadsides and disturbed wetlands.
Characteristics
Grows 2 to 5 feet tall with square, hairy stems. Leaves are lance-shaped, opposite or in whorls of three. Flowers have 5-6 petals and grow in dense, elongated terminal spikes blooming from top to bottom.
Habitat
Wetlands, marshes, riverbanks, and damp roadside ditches.
When to Find It
Blooms from June through September.
Conservation Status
N/A
Ecological Role
Highly invasive in North America; forms dense monocultures that crowd out native wetland vegetation and degrade wildlife habitats.
Easily Confused With
Fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium), which has rounder stems and flowers blooming from bottom to top, and Blazing Star (Liatris spp.), which has alternate leaves.
Observation Tips
Often found easily along roadsides and wet ditches in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan during mid-to-late summer.
Interesting Facts
A single purple loosestrife plant can produce over two million seeds per year, which are easily spread by wind, water, and wildlife.
User Notes
Along the side of the road upper peninsula Michigan