Richard's photo of flowering marsh weeds
<http://people.simons-rock.edu/rlovison/image22.jpg> which he calls
Fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium) is probably actually Purple
Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria).
It's a common mis-identification since Fireweed is a similar looking
invasive native species in the US while Purple Loosestrife is an even
more invasive non-native species from Europe and Asia. I'm sure it must
be in the UK so perhaps Chris will recognize it now but perhaps it
doesn't grow so densely there. Fireweed would prefer to grow in a
meadow while Purple Loosestrife prefers to have its feet at least damp
if not wet.
It's a real scourge here since there are no native biological controls
and the stuff (while pretty) grows so dense that it squeezes out the
native plants and their dependent wildlife. My property encompasses an
acre of eastern Massachusetts wetland and it's everywhere. It also
includes a very shallow man-made settlement pond spec'd by the local
conservation commission. They couldn't possibly have designed a better
environment for Purple Loosestrife than that pond... so much for government!
The US Fish & Wildlife Service is now conducting experiments at various
US refuges aimed at finding imported biological controls... that don't
also eat everything else.
For much more than you're likely to want to know about Purple
Loosestrife see:
<http://www.fws.gov/r5mnwr/mnwrls.html> and
<http://www.agron.iastate.edu/~weeds/weedbiollibrary/517%20student%20pages/2000/purple.htm>
Chuck Norcutt
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