Lythrum portula

Broad leaved loosestrife

Family: Lythraceae · Type: annual · Not Native

Broad leaved loosestrife is a naturalized annual found in northern Sierra Nevada, northern California, and Sacramento Valley in drying ponds and lake margins at elevations of 1,000 to 2,200 meters. Flowering from April to October, this plant produces white to rose-pink flowers less than 1 millimeter long in individual axillary clusters. Growing with extensively creeping or decumbent stems 5 to 25 centimeters long that are reddish and branched at the base, it has a low-growing, spreading habit. Its opposite leaves are fleshy, oblong to obovate, and measure 0.5 to 1.5 centimeters long. The plant produces small, nearly spherical fruits that extend beyond the flower's base.

Habitat: Drying ponds, lake margins

Bloom period: Apr-Oct

Elevation: 1000-2200 m

Bioregions: CaR, n SN, ScV

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.