Lythrum salicaria

Purple loosestrife

Family: Lythraceae · Type: perennial · Not Native

Conservation status: Cal-IPC Yes

Purple loosestrife is a naturalized perennial herb found in southern North Coast, North Coast Ranges, northern Sierra Nevada Foothills, Sacramento Valley, Central Coast, and northwestern Modoc Plateau in marshes, ponds, and streambanks at elevations below 1,000 meters. Flowering from May to October, this invasive plant produces red-purple flowers 7 to 14 millimeters long in dense clusters along the stem. Growing 50 to 150 centimeters tall with erect stems that are glabrous or slightly gray-puberulent, it forms few-branched clumps. Its leaves are sessile, 5 to 14 centimeters long, lanceolate to nearly ovate, and truncate at the base. The plant produces distinctive flowers with three different style forms and 12 stamens, making it a notable wetland species.

Habitat: Marshes, ponds, streambanks

Bloom period: May-Oct

Elevation: < 1000 m

Bioregions: s NCo, NCoRO, n SNF, ScV, CCo, nw MP

California counties: Nevada, Butte, Shasta, Kern, Alameda, San Bernardino, Yolo, San Joaquin, Marin, Sutter, El Dorado, Sonoma, Fresno, Merced, Stanislaus, San Mateo, San Diego, Contra Costa, Solano, Mendocino, Siskiyou, Placer, Humboldt, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, Colusa

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