Swamp candles facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Swamp candles |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Lysimachia
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| Species: |
terrestris
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Lysimachia terrestris (also known as swamp candles, lake loosestrife, or earth loosestrife) is a pretty plant that belongs to the Primulaceae family. You can often find it growing in wet places.
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What Does Swamp Candles Look Like?
Swamp candles is a herbaceous plant, which means it has soft stems instead of woody ones like a tree. It has leaves that grow in pairs directly across from each other on the stem. The stems stand up straight.
Its flowers grow in a tall cluster called a raceme at the very top of the plant. This flower cluster can be about 10 to 30 centimeters (4 to 12 inches) long. The flowers are shaped like stars with five yellow petals. They usually appear in the middle of summer. Each petal has two small red dots at its base. These dots form a circle of ten red dots in the center of the flower.
- Gallery
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Larvae of Monostegia abdominalis
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Leaves skeletonized by larv
Where Does Swamp Candles Grow?
Lysimachia terrestris likes to grow in wet areas. You can find it in swamps and along the edges of ponds and lakes. It grows naturally in the Eastern United States and Eastern Canada. You can also find it in the U.S. states of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, and in British Columbia, Canada.
Sometimes, a plant species can be in danger of disappearing. Lysimachia terrestris is listed as an endangered plant in Tennessee and Kentucky. This means there are not many of these plants left in those states.
Who Eats Swamp Candles?
One of the main insects that eats Lysimachia terrestris is a type of sawfly called Monostegia abdominalis. The young sawflies, called larvae, can eat almost all of the soft parts of the leaves. This leaves behind only the veins, making the leaves look like a skeleton.
Images for kids
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Example of red axillary bulblets, observed in late September
