Photographs: Co. Cork

Purple-loosestrife Lythrum salicaria Créachtach Family: Lythraceae Flowering time: June-September. Perennial. Native. Whorls of red-purple flowers in tall spikes. The leaves are oval-lanceolate, untoothed, pointed and often turning orange or red in autumn. Stiff erect stems, height 60-100cm. Found in damp meadows, by streams and rivers and also on damp roadsides. Less frequent in Northern Ireland Related: Water-purslane, L. portula. A much smaller, creeping plant

Purple-loosestrife, Lythrum salicaria, Créachtach