Stonecrop Family [Crassulaceae] |
status
flower
morph
petals
stem
sex
23rd June 2008, Teal Scrape, Pennington Flash, Wigan. | Photo: © Paul Breslin |
An aggressive alien invader of still freshwaters, usually throw-outs from garden ponds. The elongated brown heap in the foreground looks like previous attempts at raking the lake and getting rid of this highly-invasive plant. |
14th June 2006, Manchester Airport Pond. | Photo: © Paul Breslin |
It is a mostly submerged perennial, occupying shallow waters and stranded on mud. |
26th Oct 2007 | Photo: © Paul Breslin |
Forms a thick carpet with reddish stems up to 30cm long and short pointed green leaves. |
8th July 2017, Park Gardens, Waterloo, Sefton Coast | Photo: © RWD |
The flowers are tiny, just 1-2mm across. |
14th June 2006, Manchester Airport Pond. | Photo: © Paul Breslin |
Flowers have four almost equilateral-triangular petals. |
26th Oct 2011, Fernilee Resevoir, Whaley Bridge, Derbys. | Photo: © RWD |
Leaves short and fleshy, mostly in opposite pairs up a fleshy reddish stalk. |
8th July 2017, Park Gardens, Waterloo, Sefton Coast | Photo: © RWD |
Some flowers on longish stalks emerging just above the leaf nodes. |
26th Oct 2011, Fernilee Resevoir, Whaley Bridge, Derbys. | Photo: © RWD |
Un-opened flower buds are pinkish. The fruits are in four segments and greenish at first. |
26th Oct 2011, Fernilee Resevoir, Whaley Bridge, Derbys. | Photo: © RWD |
The flowers have four white petals and four stamens bearing yellow pollen. |
26th Oct 2011, Fernilee Resevoir, Whaley Bridge, Derbys. | Photo: © RWD |
An as-yet un-opened flower, 4 petals still to unfold (top centre). In autumn the leaves go brownish. |
8th July 2017, Park Gardens, Waterloo, Sefton Coast | Photo: © RWD |
The anthers have opened into red Ace-of-Spades shapes, now lacking pollen. Sepals and Petals alternate. Flowers on longish stalks which emerge above leaf-nodes. |
8th July 2017, Park Gardens, Waterloo, Sefton Coast | Photo: © RWD |
The 4 white styles as pillars in the centre. |
8th July 2017, Park Gardens, Waterloo, Sefton Coast | Photo: © RWD |
The flower stalk merges into a widening sepal-cup. Many flowers have pink-tinged petals. |
8th July 2017, Park Gardens, Waterloo, Sefton Coast | Photo: © RWD |
Four developing pale-green fruits in the centre, each with a style still attached. Tiny black flies on leaves. |
Distinguishing Feature : Easily distinguished from another stonecrop called just This is another problematic plant in that it quickly invades any still freshwater where it has been discarded by aquatic gardeners, to the detriment and ultimately entire exclusion of all other aquatic plants and fish in the pond. An aquatic plant that is usually submerged, but sometimes becomes stranded on muddy shores. It was virtually un-known in Britain two decades ago (i.e. before 1990 or so).
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Crassula | helmsii | ⇐ Global Aspect ⇒ | Crassulaceae |
Crassula (Pigmyweeds) |
Stonecrop Family [Crassulaceae] |