Marion, Flathead, Montana (Zone 5a) 4b - 5a ... deep in the NW rockies
This plant was found in a water catchment near a large cattail grouping that is damp to wet all year round , standing water whenever it rains ... zone is 5a . The leaves and stems have a waxy feel to them and leaves turn a darker w/ bluish red edges just before or at flowering time { maybe due to wet silty soil with clay underneath ? maybe a nutrient or ph issue } ... stems become woody as it matures ... root structure/shape/base seems to be shallow and spread out , mostly woody instead of a corm or bulb . I didn't take a pic of last summers flowers ... my bad . The flowers are purplish and very tiny and show in late summer . Total height of the biggest mature plant was about 4 ft . It looks out of place where it was found , maybe a cultivated species that escaped . Initially i thought it was a Liatris phenotype by the flowers look { small and delicate } ... but the leaf shape and feel seems to rule that out .
Could it be Cephalanthus occidentalis commonly called Button Bush or Buttonbush? You might google that to see an image of the blooms and see if they might be similar.
Marion, Flathead, Montana (Zone 5a) 4b - 5a ... deep in the NW rockies
No , the flower type is much different . I have uploaded some pics of the top 18 inches of the flower spikes that I kept from last year . The habit is quite tall and thin ... Stems initially fleshy and green but harden and darken as they get woody ... even up into the flowering tips . The 2nd year growth { about 12 inches already } in the first 2 pics will end up being 4ft maybe even 5ft ... I forgot I sunk in the wet swampy muck to my ankles to get at these specimens !
The way it grows looks like Purple Loosestrife - Lysimachia salicaria which grows in bogs and water. The leaves look a bit more fuzzy than mine but there's cultivars.
Marion, Flathead, Montana (Zone 5a) 4b - 5a ... deep in the NW rockies
YES thats it !!! found this site from google images ... is exactly the conditions I found first specimen in ... http://www.utahweed.org/weed_p... " Purple loosestrife is a European plant probably introduced to the United States as an ornamental" So that pretty much nails it ... confirms my suspicion its not from around here , definitely an ornamental ... woody root structure and seeds extremely small & black . Coordinates of finding is 42°21'40.7"N 88°49'31.3"W ... was not expecting it to be classified a european invasive escapee tho { but then I have Onopordum Acanthium - Scottish Thistle to counter the massive infestation of Bull Thistles in my area } ... but its definitly Lythrum salicaria ... a Purple Loosestrife cultivar . Many Thanks JRsbugs !!!
