Winter survival of late emerging purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) seedlings

In wetlands, drought or managed late-summer drawdowns create exposed mudflats that provide an excellent substrate for germination of purple loosestrife seeds. If late-emerging purple loosestrife seedlings survive the winter, new or expanding populations of purple loosestrife will result. Spring survival was determined for overwintered purple loosestrife seedlings from seeds planted at weekly intervals in late summer or fall of the previous year. Seedlings of purple loosestrife that emerged from late July to early August had the greatest survival rates and the greatest shoot dry weight, and they were the tallest the following spring. However, 37% of purple loosestrife seedlings that emerged in late August, although stunted, generated a crown that was able to overwinter successfully and regrow the following spring. The number of growing degree days accumulated from planting date to October 6 (the average date of first frost for Minneapolis and St. Paul, MN) was 1,424 for seedlings from seeds planted on July 21 but only 219 for seedlings from seeds planted on September 15. Purple loosestrife seedlings that emerge during late summer through early September in Minnesota may survive the winter to create additional purple loosestrife weed problems in wetland mudflats caused by artificial drawdowns or droughts.