Dodder twists itself around other plants to feed off of them.


Spreading Out T e flowers of the purple loosestrife look nice. Yet the roots of this plant are not. T ey kill other plants. T is flower grows in thick clumps.


Its roots form a thick mat under the ground. T e mat crowds out the roots of other plants. Now, these plants have no room to grow, so they die. Most plants need roots to survive. Roots help anchor a plant. Roots


also take in water and minerals from the soil to feed plants. T e main root is the taproot. It’s thick and stores a lot of energy. As the loosestrife’s roots spread, its


flowers grow. Each flower is packed with seeds. Each seed is as small as a grain of black pepper. Wind, water, and animals spread


the seeds. T en new plants take root. T ey spread through the wetlands where these flowers grow. T e flowers choke waterways. T ey kill plants that animals need to eat, nest, and hide.


14 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORER


Purple loosestrife crowds out other plants.


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