DECEMBER2020PLANTOFTHEMONTHMoneywort,Lysimachianummularia

Moneywortorcreepingjennyisafast-growinggroundcoverinthePrimrosefamily.WhileitisnativetoEuropeandtemperateAsia,itisconsideredinvasiveinseveralUSstates.SeveralcultivarsofthisevergreenperennialarecommonlyavailableinnurseriesandbigboxstoreshereinOhioasapottingorlandscapingaccent.Theplanthasoppositeyellowishgreentodarkgreenleavesandsmall,yellowflowersthatbloomthroughoutthesummer.Itisalow-growingherbthatisoftennomorethan2-3”tall.Theplantconsistsoflong,trailingvinesrunningacrossthesurfaceofthegroundthatbranchfrequentlyandcommonlyformrootsatthenodes.Itgrowsinfullsuntofullshade,butprefersshadedareaswithmoisttowetsoils,makingitacommoninvaderofOhio’swetlandhabitats.ThisspeciesisanoldEuropeangardenplantwithmanycommonnames.Linnaeusassignedtheepitaph"nummularia",whichtranslatesfromLatinas"resemblingacoin,"areferencetotheplantsconsistentlyroundleaves.InEngland,theplantisreferredtoas"Twopence",howevermoneywortseemedabetterchoiceonthissideoftheAtlantic.HereintheUS,CreepingJennyseemstobethemostcommonlyusednameinthenurserytrade.WhilewearenotsurewhyitiscalledCreepingJenny,itturnsoutthatthislittleherbwasfirstgrownasanherbalremedyinEurope.AccordingtoGerrard’sHerbaloftheearly17thcentury,"Theherbeboiledinwinewithalittlehonie,ormeade,prevailethmuchagainstthecoughinchildren,calledchinnecough."The"chinnecough"towhichherefersiswhatweknowaswhoopingcough.Itwouldn’tbemuchofastretchtoimagine"creepingchenny"changingto"creepingJenny"astheoldwordforthediseasefellintodisuse.WhilemoneyworthasnotyetbeenevaluatedbytheOIPCAssessmentTeam,itisonthelistfortheupcomingroundofassessmentsin2021.ThisspeciesisnowcommonthroughoutOhioandhasspreadfarbeyondlandscapedareaswhereitwasplantedasagroundcover.Weoftenseeitinvadingwethabitatsbysolidlycoveringtheground,eliminatingspacefornativespecies.Theplantishighlyadaptable,occurringnotonlyinlowqualitywetlandhabitatssuchasroadsideditches,butappearingasaprimarycomponentofremote,highqualityhabitatssuchaswetmeadows,swamps,floodplainforests,streambanks,bogs,andotherwethabitats.Theplantisdifficulttocontrolasitcanreproducevegetativelyfromverysmallpiecesofstemthatareeasilybrokenfromthemainplant.Flowersproduceonlyafewsmallseeds,butthesheervolumeofseedsproducedcanoverwhelmeffortstocontrolitsspread.Clearly,effectivedispersalvectorsexistthatintroducethisspeciestofar-reachinghabitatsthroughoutOhioandtheeasternUS.Wehopetoevaluatethisplantinthecomingseasontoprovideinformativecontrolmethodologiesandlegislativeguidancetorestrictthespreadofthisinvader.WrittenbyGaryConleyandJenniferWindus,OIPCBoard

Photocourtesyof:Leslie J. Mehrhoff

Courtesyof:Shaun Winterton

Photocourtesyof:LeslieJ.Mehrhoff

Photocourtesyof:ThayneTuason