Protect Our Lakes: Spotting Purple Loosestrife
Help Stop the Spread of Purple Loosestrife!
Protecting our lakes isn’t just BRWD’s responsibility — it’s a community effort.
Recently, our Natural Resources Program Manager, Rebecca Jacobs, spotted purple loosestrife growing along the shoreline of Knickerbocker Lake. While its bright purple flowers may look beautiful, this plant is anything but harmless.
Rebecca worked with the Boothbay Register to bring this issue to light, providing background knowledge, scientific resources, and a tour of local sites where the plant has begun to take hold. Her message is clear: public awareness and resident action are essential to protecting our watershed.
Why purple loosestrife is a problem
- Outcompetes native plants because it has no natural predators or diseases here
- Alters shorelines and wetlands, changing water flow and habitat
- Threatens fish and amphibians that rely on diverse native vegetation
Purple loosestrife: Pretty, but problematic
For identification tips and details, read the full Boothbay Register article here:
How you can help
Three key steps for our community:
Step 1:
Share this information with friends, neighbors, and lakefront property owners.
Step 2:
Check your property
If you spot purple loosestrife, manage or remove it before it spreads further.
Step 3:
Don’t be fooled
Native plants like fireweed and liatris may look similar but are beneficial species that belong here.
"It is critical to have a public outreach campaign to have residents assess their own properties and, if present, remove/manage [these plants] to prevent further spread."
— Rebecca Jacobs, BRWD Natural Resources Program Manager
“Purple Loosestrife4” & “Loosestrike Marsh2” by Liz West, licensed under CC BY 2.0.