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Moneywort
(Lysimachia nummularia or L. nummelaria)
Creeping, low-growing perennial with round, opposite leaves and yellow flowers.
Overview
This species is Restricted (Orange counties)
Other names for this plant include:
- Common names: Creeping Jenny, creeping Joan, running Jenny, wandering Jenny, wandering sailor
- Scientific names: None.
Ecological threat:
- Invades moist forests, woodland edges, floodplain forests, swamps, wet meadows, fens, stream borders, lawns, roadside ditches, and grasslands.
- Moneywort has been known to choke small springs and seeps in rich woods due to its rapid spread and ability to form dense layers.
- This species is capable of rapid vegetative spread that can form dense, low-growing mats.
- This species forms a dense ground cover layer, thereby altering the plant community structure and reducing the population size of some native species in the herb layer.
- Noted as an invasive species throughout much of the United States.
Classification in Wisconsin: Restricted (the cultivar Aurea and yellow and gold leaf forms are exempt)
Species Assessment Groups (SAG) were assembled to recommend a legal classification for each species considered for NR 40. The recommendation for moneywort was based upon this literature review developed by the department.
Identification
Leaves & stems: Simple leaves with opposite leaf arrangement. Leaves are round and shiny. Stems are smooth, low-growing and trailing. Stems branch frequently to form mat-like growth.
Flowers: Yellow, small, and marked with deep red blotches. 5-petaled flowers are born individually on leaf axils. Flowers bloom June to August.
Roots: White and trailing.
Distribution
Counties in WI where moneywort has been reported (as of July 2013). Both vouchered and unvouchered reports included.
Have you seen moneywort in your county, but it isn't shaded on the map? Send us a report.
Control
Mechanical:
- For small infestations, plants may be pulled or dug. Make sure to remove all stems, stem fragments, and roots to prevent the stems from rooting again in the soil.
- Prolonged submergence in water will kill moneywort.
- At restoration sites, moneywort can be controlled by establishing native grasses to shade it out.
- In fire-adapted plant communities, controlled burns in the early spring or late fall (when native species are dormant) may be helpful.
Chemical:
- Several herbicides are effective in controlling moneywort; however, because moneywort usually grows in or near wetlands, be sure that the herbicide is aquatically-approved. Rodeo is one such herbicide product that may be effective.
Photos
View moneywort pictures in our photo gallery!
Resources
Sources for content:
- USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network - (GRIN) [Online Database]. National Germplasm Resources Laboratory.
- Czarapata, Elizabeth; Invasive Plants of the Upper Midwest: an illustrated guide to their identification and control. University of Wisconsin Press. 2005. Pg. 112
- USDA Forest Service, Weed of Week: Moneywort [exit DNR]
Links for More Information