Purple Loosestrife is a perennial plant brought to North America in the 1800 's by immigrants who valued the purple flower.It is now a serious pest of pastures and wetlands.
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Over 100 species of insects and diseases kept PLS under control in thier native habitat.NONE of these natural enemies exist here!
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PLS takes over,our common cattails & sedges that cannot compete and are choked out,
...so.
The wildlife that depends on them for food and shelter are also Eliminated...PLS has little food value for animals,and populations of this plant grow so thick it cannot be used as cover for wildlife..........................................................PLS also invades shallow waters used by fish such as Northern Pike,thereby ruining the spawning grounds.
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PLS reproduces prolifically,one plant can produce several million seeds in a season,plus root and stem fragments can form new plants. Primarily carried by rivers, floodwaters ,stream,and run-off waters.......animals also track it about.
................In some States it is common in roadside ditches.
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PLEASE DO NOT PLANT PLS.........There are dozens of this type flower that are not destroying our environment.
.......Whew!!!
....I believe that our DG family will be carefull regarding all Invasive Pest plants.......Free is not 'Always' good
TY for letting me vent,
..shirley >^,,^< SB
Loosestrife...please do not propagate ..............
Loosestrife is also used for lythrum or other plants, the yellow plant showed-I believe is Lysimachis punctant.; called yellow loosestrife. We have the purple one in the lakes in Central WI and it has recently been put on the banned list-pretty to look at-impossible to control.
This message was edited Sep 19, 2003 12:40 AM
Many nurseries are still selling Purple Loosestrife labeled as sterile. This is to be taken as a mistake as they are still capable of producing seeds.
Whole areas of native cattail and sedges have been choked out by this plant. The waterfowl won't nest or feed in it for long and the songbirds seem to avoid it too.
Gorgeous but not something to have even if you live away from waterways since you never know what a bird or mammal might take on their feet or feathers to another location.
Shirley, thanks for that info. I'm not sure if someone is sending me that, I'll check. I have a birds myself and I personnally love them, wouldnt want to do something to harm the environment...enough is being done without my help!!! :-)
God Bless
Julieanne
Gabby and Marcia.....
...Guess I should have highlighted the First word of my post........
......P U R P L E
.......
Sorry for any confusion caused
WOW,look at the beard on 'that Iris'>>>>>
......puttytat's TB Stingray...........over here>>>>>
..
..Edited to read "NOT over here anymore" tee-hee
This message was edited Sep 19, 2003 12:39 PM
LOL you dont have to do too much to confruse me LOL I do that on my own hehehe luff ya sis
huh? What? LOL
Scooterbug-no problem-I saw the purple then saw that someone was wanting some for trade. That stuff is the kudzu ala Purple; I have seen the rampant growth on my way to visit sister in Fond du Lac-instead of a pond- a sea of purple.
I chopped the " Morden Pink" out of my friend's garden and I do mean chopped-the roots had grown under the deck and I had to use a axe. One of the roots was so knotted, I brought it home to use for crafts, just dumped it on the bricks to dry out, found it weeks-months later, under some plastic and it had sprouted!!!!! I was able to "disable" it-eventually. Now it is in my craft heap with rocks, beads etc. and quite dead. Will not be used for outdoor craft though!!
Marcia,
....brief sidetrack....RE:Kudzu
.........I had heard of this terrible invasion,but until I started taking road trips south I had no idea of the terrible consequences a rampant non-native plant could cause...unbelieveable!!!!!
......... Truely-So sad :-((
What is the botanical name of this plant, please? I don't want to be the one who starts growing them here in Chile.
Thanks,
Ursula
Ursula,
here you go...thanks for caring.....
Kudzu Vine -Pueraria lobata or P.thunbergiana
Purple loosestrife - Lythrum salicaria
Scooterbug,
thanks for the warning. What a pity for the Lythrum (such beautiful flower). I was already informed about Kudzu.
It's important to be responsible gardeners!
Ursula
They really are beautiful but they don't need to get a foothold in more places. Ursula, thank you for being resposible!
I just saw a piece on TV about a lady who makes really neat twig furniture with kudzu branches. Many of her creations were twisted because they had killed the tree that they grew up. The twists were pretty for the furniture but I am sure the tree wasn't impressed with it.
We have a horrendous infestation of purple loosestrife here in western Canada also. If you ever see one, kill it.
http://www.invasivespecies.gov/profiles/purplstrf.shtml
I wonder if there is a good variety of lythrum? Are all species in the genus invasive and to be avoided at all costs?
TC...
As far as I know it is the only species, but with so many plants available and many that are similar to it, why risk? The wetlands are dissapearing in a cloud of purple.
D_t and everbody here; I'm thinkin about mentioning the hazards of growing PL to someone on my college campus. I'm wondering if they even know about it's invasive nature. You'd think an institute of higher learning would, eh?
TC...
Purple loosestrife has invaded the NY side of Lake Champlain up in Plattsburg--I've seen vast beds of it. Boaters beware! This stuff can get entangled on anchors and motor propeller blades, getting "transplanted" wherever they fall off or shed seed.
I checked out NY's invasive plants list, and yes, all lythrum are considered "bad" because they can cross-pollinate the purple. It was a real shocker to see what else the state doesn't want us to grow--Lonerica saponica(shrub honeysuckle), barberry bushes, Dame's Rocket--to name a few! Your states probably have similiar lists online.
There is now a beetle that is being used here and in Washington pretty succesfully that will eat the plant and a grub that will eat the roots but it has been very costly to import these bugs and test them so they know they will ONLY eat loosestrife. One area near me was all purple about three years ago and now you only see a smattering of the purple when it is in full bloom. That area is being used for a nursery for these beetles so they can be harvested and moved to other hot spots. The ducks and geese wouldn't even go there any more and are now returning. So are the cattails and bullrush.
WHEN WILL IT STOP????Importing more bugz,strange to our ecosystem,this is getting too worrysome.......what will be the impact if this critter??? Only the future will tell =(