September 13, 2010

Purple Loosestrife



The purple loosestrife growing at the borders of my pond has begun to dry, turning a beautiful purplish color, so I picked a bunch for winter display. Now I must go out and cut all the heads so that the plants don't set seed. I love the look of this flower, but I found out from listening to a program on Vermont Public Radio that it is very invasive, taking over wetlands and crowding out native plants. I had no idea of this when I planted 2 or 3 around my pond. For years they didn't spread, barely even bloomed because the deer ate them (there's a worn trail in the grass around the pond). But this year they are on the move: I pulled out several plants that had migrated to my lower field, where I'd never seen them before. Here is a perfect example of the dark side of beauty.

2 comments:

  1. The "dark side of beauty" is an apt description. Here in the Midwest you can see its invasive side along with canary reed grass and garlic mustard. For years I enjoyed the way loosestrife looked along the highways before I realized why it was a problem.

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  2. oh dear, Linda, canary reed grass is another invasive that I have near my pond and spreading in my fields. I had thought it was just a very pretty grass, again not realizing its destructive power.

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