Flowers and leaves. Australian Plant Image Index, photo: Murray Fagg, Yass, NSW

Flowers and leaves. Photo: Don Wood, south coast, NSW

Plants. Australian Plant Image Index, photo: AN Schmidt-Lebuhn, Illunie Nature Reserve near Cowra, NSW

Common Name

Hyssop Loosestrife, Lesser Loosestrife, Small Loosestrife

Family

Lythraceae

Notes

Annual forb to 50cm tall, or sprawling. Leaves mostly alternating up the stems, some almost opposite, 0.5-2.5cm long, 1.5-8mm wide, flat, hairless. Flowers often small (less than 3mm across) tubular, pinky mauve, red,  blue, or purple, with 4-6 spreading lobes, solitary at the bases of the leaves.

Differs from Lythrum wilsonii in that the flowers are solitary.

Description and photo in G.M. Cunningham, WE Mulham, PL Milthorpe and J H Leigh (1981 and later printings) Plants of Western New South Wales pages 509-510

PlantNET description:  http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Lythrum~hyssopifolia