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The next time you`re driving west along Illinois Highway 60 just past U.S. Highway 41, look closely along the southern edge of the roadway. Those fuschia spikes atop tall green stems are the nasty purple loosestrife, which can quickly take over a marsh and crowd out native plant life. It`s so aggressive that it`s banned for sale in Illinois.
”It`s everywhere this year,” said Penny Butler, steward at Wadsworth Preserve. ”Sometimes I just want to stop the car and dig them up.”
The invader likes the recent wet weather and can be seen in drainage ditches or other low areas along roads and lanes where water is standing.