Description
Taxonomy
| Kingdom | Phylum | Class | Order | Family | Genus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plantae | Magnoliophyta | Magnoliopsida | Polygonales | Polygonaceae | Polygonum |
Synonyms
Invasion History
Chesapeake Bay Status
| First Record | Population | Range | Introduction | Residency | Source Region | Native Region | Vectors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1739 | Established | Stable | Introduced | Boundary Resident | Europe | Eurasia | Shipping(Dry Ballast), Agriculture(Agricultural Weed) |
History of Spread
Polygonum persicaria (Ladies-Thumb) is a weed of Eurasian origin which was apparently introduced very early, since it was collected by Clayton in VA (Gronovius 1739), reported by Walter (1788) from 'Carolina' and apparently found to be widespread and 'common' by Pursh (1814). It was found in the Hudson valley by 1892 (and probably before 1814) (Mills et al. 1997), and in the Great Lakes Basin by 1886 (Mills et al. 1993). Polygonum persicaria is now found through most of the U.S., except the southwest (Agricultural Research Service 1971). It is also introduced to Australia, New Zealand, and South America (Grime et al. 1988).
Polygonum persicaria was reported by Brereton (1830) from Washington D.C. and Aikin (1837) from Baltimore, and is listed in all subsequent Washington D.C.-Baltimore floras. It is widespread and common in Virginia and Maryland as a weed of moist soils (Brown and Brown 1984; Harvill et al. 1992), but the only specific intertidal record found so far is from a 'brackish marsh margin', King George County VA (Simmons et al. 1995). A few plants were found on an intertidal cobble beach at North Point State Park, Edgemere; MD; just north of Baltimore Harbor (Fofonoff personal observation 1996).
History Refs.- Agricultural Research Service 1971; Aikin 1837; Brereton 1830; Brown and Brown 1984; Fernald 1950; Gray 1848; Grime et al. 1988; Gronovius 1739; Harvill et al. 1992; Mills et al. 1993; Mills et al. 1997; Pursh 1814; Simmons et al. 1995; Ward 1881; Wass 1972
Invasion Comments
Ecology
Environmental Tolerances
| For Survival | For Reproduction | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum | Maximum | Minimum | Maximum | |
| Temperature (ºC) | ||||
| Salinity (‰) | 0.0 | 0.0 | ||
| Oxygen | ||||
| pH | ||||
| Salinity Range | fresh-oligo |
Age and Growth
| Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Typical Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Maximum Adult Size (mm) | ||
| Maximum Longevity (yrs) | ||
| Typical Longevity (yrs |
Reproduction
| Start | Peak | End | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reproductive Season | |||
| Typical Number of Young Per Reproductive Event |
|||
| Sexuality Mode(s) | |||
| Mode(s) of Asexual Reproduction |
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| Fertilization Type(s) | |||
| More than One Reproduction Event per Year |
|||
| Reproductive Startegy | |||
| Egg/Seed Form |
Impacts
Economic Impacts in Chesapeake Bay
Polygonum persicaria (Ladies' Thumb) is a widespread agricultural weed in the Chesapeake watershed (Brown and Brown 1984; Harvill et al. 1992), but has no reported impact in the Bay proper. It is not included in state lists of plant invaders of natural areas (Cooley 1993; Delaware Natural Heritage Program 1998; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation 1999).
References- Brown and Brown 1984; Cooley 1993; Delaware Natural Heritage Program 1998; Harvill et al. 1992; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation 199
Economic Impacts Outside of Chesapeake Bay
Polygonum persicaria (Ladies' Thumb) is a widespread agricultural weed in North America and Eurasia (Agricultural Research Service 1971; Grime et al. 1988).
References- Agricultural Research Service 1971; Grime et al. 1988
Ecological Impacts on Chesapeake Native Species
Polygonum persicaria (Ladies' Thumb) is a widespread terrestrial weed in disturbed areas, but it has rarely been reported from tidal wetlands, and is expected to have few impacts there.
Ecological Impacts on Other Chesapeake Non-Native Species
Polygonum persicaria (Ladies' Thumb) is a widespread terrestrial weed in disturbed areas, but it has rarely been reported from tidal wetlands, and is expected to have few impacts there.
References
Agricultural Research Service (1971) Common weeds of the United States., In: (Eds.) . , Washington, D.C.. Pp.Aikin, W. E. A. (1837) Catalogue of phenogamous plants and ferns, native or naturalized, growing in the vicinity of Baltimore, Maryland., Transactions of the Maryland Academy of Sciences and Literature 1: 55-91
Brereton, J. A. (1830) Prodromus of the Flora Columbiana, , Washington, D.C.. Pp.
Brown, Melvin L.; Brown, Russell G. (1984) Herbaceous Plants of Maryland, , College Park. Pp.
Consaul, Laurie L.; Warwick, Suzanne I.; McNeill, John (1991) Allozyme variation in the Polygonum lapathifolium complex, Canadian Journal of Botany 69: 2261-2270
Cooley, Gene (1993) Invasive exotic plants that threaten native species and natural habitats in Maryland., , Annapolis MD. Pp.
1998 Non-native plant species in Delaware. http://www.dnrec.statede.us/iw/weeds.htm
Fernald, Merritt L. (1950) Gray's Manual of Botany, In: (Eds.) . , New York. Pp.
Gleason, Henry A.; Cronquist, Arthur (1991) Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada, In: (Eds.) . , Bronx, New York. Pp.
Gray, Asa (1848) A manual of botany of the northern United States., In: (Eds.) . , Boston. Pp.
Grime. J. P.; Hodgson, J. G.; Hunt, R. (1988) Comparative plant ecology: A functional approach to common British species, , London. Pp.
Gronovius, Johannes Fredericius (1739) Flora Virginica exhibens plantas quas V. C. Johannes Clayton in Virginia observavit atque collegit., , London. Pp.
Harvill, A. M.; Bradley, Ted R.; Stevens, Charles E.; Wieboldt, Thomas F.; Ware, Donna M. E.; Ogle, Douglas W.; Ramsey, Gwynn W.; Fleming, Gary P. (1992) Atlas of the Virginia Flora, , Burkeville, VA. Pp.
Kartesz, John T. (1994) A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland., In: (Eds.) . , Portland OR. Pp.
Mills, Edward L.; Leach, Joseph H.; Carlton, James T.; Secor, Carol L. (1993) Exotic species in the Great Lakes: a history of biotic crises and anthropogenic introductions., Journal of Great Lakes Research 19: 1-54
Mills, Edward L.; Scheuerell, Mark D.; Carlton, James T.; Strayer, David (1997) Biological invasions in the Hudson River: an inventory and historical analysis., New York State Museum Circular 57: 1-51
Pursh, Frederick (1814) Flora Americae Septentrionalis or, a Systematic Arrangement and Description of the Plants of North America, , Hirschburg. Pp.
Resource Management Inc. (1993) National list of plant species that occur in wetlands., , Minneapolis.. Pp.
Reveal, James L. (1983) Significance of pre-1753 botanical explorations in temperate North America on Linnaeus' first edition of Species Plantarum, Phytologia 53: 1-96
Simmons, Mark P.; Ware, Donna M.; Hayden, W. John (1995) The vascular flora of the Potomac River watershed of King George County, Virginia, Castanea 60: 179-209
Ward, L. F. (1881) Guide to the flora of Washington and Vicinity, United States National Museum Bulletin 22: 1-264