Invasive Plant Spotlight

Characteristics

This nonnative, invasive species forms dense mats low to the ground in freshwater and low-salinity tidal marshes, swamps, ditches and other disturbed wetlands.  It is characterized by prostrate stems that creep along at ground level, often rooting at lower nodes.  Its leaves are lance-shaped and range from 2.5-7cm long and .3-1cm wide.  Marsh Dayflower typically blooms in September – October, featuring small three petalled pink to purple flowers that terminate the delicate branched stems. It has been introduced to a majority of Virginia counties and is forecasted to continue to push its invasive range westward.  Originating in tropical Asia, the Marsh Dayflower was accidentally introduced to the United States in South Carolina in the 1930s (Flora of Virginia, 2017; VADCR, n.d.; CISEH, n.d.).  

Management

The Commelinaceae (Spiderworts) family contains 40 genera and over 600 individual species, spanning the global tropics.  Marsh Dayflower is considered a pest species, even in its native range, for its ability to infiltrate rice fields.  Because of this potential commercial impact, there is literature related to the managment of Marsh Dayflower in an agricultural setting.  The combination of continuously flooded rice fields, compared to intermittent saturation, with a diluted application of the herbicide bispyribac-sodium was most effective at balancing controlling weed pressure and encouraging adequate rice biomass (Ferrerro et al., 2012). This specific herbicide is systemic, and concentrations need to be maintained in the water column for over 60 days. In parts of the Blackwater River watershed with moving water, manual removal may be more effective as a primary method with herbicide applications restricted geographically or seasonally (WDNR, 2022).