![]() Ohio regulations prohibit the sale of purple loosestrife without a special permit from the Director of the Department of Agriculture. No other wetland plants will create dense stands and have purplish flowers. Plants often have up to 50 stems of up to 8 feet tall, with the whole plant sometimes as wide as 5 feet. In the fall, leaves turn vibrant red in color. ![]() Stems typically have 4 or 6 sides and are slightly hairy. Leaves are attached to the stem in sets of two or three. ![]() Showy magenta to purplish flowers with 5-7 petals on long 4- 18 inch spikes makes this an easy plant to identify from July to September. Once established, an individual plant can often live as long as 20 years. With a seed production as high as 2 million per plant, the ability to reproduce from fragments of its stem, and a high tolerance to water and variability to soils it has spread across most of the United States and can be found in many areas in Ohio. Thick growth can reduce water flow by clogging drainage ditches. Purple loosestrife grows in dense stands along waterways and wetlands, choking out native wetland species. Additionally, horticulturists imported seeds for landscaping and gardens. Native to Europe and Asia, purple loosestrife ( Lythrum salicaria) was speculated to be first introduced to the United States from colonial settlers as ship ballast was unloaded from their sailing ships. If left uncontrolled, purple loosestrife will take over our remaining wetlands. However, beneath this superficial beauty lies an aggressive, untamable beast. Have you been wondering what the dense stands of attractive purple flowers are that you’ve been seeing along roadsides and wet areas? It is probably purple loosestrife, a quite attractive plant.
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