Winged Loosestrife

A beautiful plant native to N. America that looks much like L. salicaria (but not as tall). Those who wish to grow the handsome but ecolo...Read Moregically damaging Eurasian purple loosestrife (L. salicaria and L. virgatum) in North America might consider growing this species instead. It looks similar and is similarly long blooming.

This native species grows wild in the midwest and the gulf coast, but it's rare in the east from North Carolina to Pennsylvania.

This native plant should not be confused with Lythrum salicaria (Purple Loosestrife). The latter is an aggressive Eurasian plant that inv...Read Moreades wetlands and forms dense stands that exclude other species. It was introduced to the United States as an ornamental plant. As compared to the native plant, Purple Loosestrife has wingless stems, a larger size, and slender willow-like leaves that often have hairs.

A woody, multi branched, slender stemmed shrub that can reach 6 feet tall. The flowers are pinkish purple with 6 crinkled lobes. In Flori...Read Moreda the plant blooms from about May through September. Its natural habitat is marshes, flatwoods and wet depressions from North Carolina south through penninsular Florida and east to Oklahoma and Texas.

Not to be confused with L. salicaria, Winged Loosestrife is native to the United States and has hairles semmed with leaves that are alter...Read Morenate in the upper half of the stem and opposite in the lower half. It is not considered invasive; in fact, it is considered rare in many areas.

Care should still be taken to ensure L. salicaria is not growing nearby, as the species can cross-pollinate.