This weedy wetland plant is everywhere on iNaturalist this week
iNaturalist Community
Invasive Species
If you've walked past a muddy ditch, pond edge, or disturbed field lately, there's a decent chance you've stepped right past this plant without noticing its tiny pink flower spikes.
Low smartweed is a sprawling plant with thin pink flower spikes that loves muddy, wet, disturbed ground like ditches and pond edges. Right now it's one of the most-photographed plants on iNaturalist, with over 500 sightings logged across the US in just one week, though that's a bit fewer than the week before. It's not native to the US and spreads easily, so it tends to pop up wherever soil has been disturbed near water.
Key Findings
527 observations of low smartweed (Persicaria longiseta) were logged in the US in the past 7 days
That's a drop of 137 observations from the prior week's total of 664
It ranks among the most-observed plant species in the country during this period
chevron_right Technical Summary
Low smartweed, an introduced wetland plant, was logged 527 times by iNaturalist users across the US this week, slightly down from 664 the week before, making it one of the most-observed plants in the country right now.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Trending: low smartweed (Persicaria longiseta) — 527 observations this week
Low smartweed (Persicaria longiseta) is a species in the family Polygonaceae. iNaturalist users recorded 527 observations of it in the United States in the 7 days before today, among the most for a...
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
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Persicaria longiseta is a species of flowering plant in the knotweed family known by the common names Oriental lady's thumb, bristly lady's thumb, Asiatic smartweed, long-bristled smartweed, low smartweed, Asiatic waterpepper, bristled knotweed, bunchy knotweed, and tufted knotweed. It is native ...