By Lara Fominoff @fomsy1 on Twitter

Invasive weed found in west Lethbridge can ruin entire ecosystems

Jul 25, 2017 | 12:23 PM

LETHBRIDGE – When Jackie Cardinal was out doing some work for the city recently, she never thought she’d spot a weed so invasive, that it can quickly take over a wetlands area in a single season.
 
The Lethbridge Parks Natural Resource Coordinator was surprised when she confirmed that what she found was a plant, not seen before in Lethbridge parks.
 
“What we found was Purple Loosestrife, a prohibited, noxious weed. Even though it looks beautiful, it will take over an entire wetland or plant area and completely choke out everything else. All the natural plantlife and everything.”
 
“I actually found it. I’m working on a project to clean up the ponds a little bit. So I was out mapping where we could cut back the cattails a bit and go in and do some clean up of the pond weed that’s actually in the water, and I noticed these bright purple flowers. And when you see bright purple in a wetland, you have to stop and wonder ‘what is it?’ and ‘should it be there?’ “
 
Cardinal took a number of pictures and then confirmed the plant species with local biologists.
 
She says it could have come from anywhere; from pets carrying a seed on their fur, to the seeds floating on canals next to ponds.
 
The plant used to be something homeowners could buy at local greenhouses, but now, its sale is prohibited.
 
“One plant can throw off up to a million seeds in one season, and it generally has between 20 and 50 shoots coming off of its root system.”
 
Cardinal is asking people to keep an eye out for Purple Loosestrife in other wetlands areas of the city, and to let them know immediately, if they spot it anywhere else.
 
“To get a positive identification, they should call us at the city, and we can come out and have a look at it. And if it’s on city property, we’ll take it out. But if it’s on private property, it will be up to the resident to take it out.”