Purple alternanthera

Family: Amaranthaceae
Scientific name: Alternanthera brasiliana
Description: Plant Form: Perennial herb or small shrub. Size: Up to 2 m tall. Can occasionally climb to 4 m. Stem: Reddish or purplish, smooth, with fine hairs when young becoming hairless with age. Leaves: In pairs, green with a purple tinge or bright reddish-purple. Flowers: Tiny and whitish in dense clusters up to 2 cm long in the leaf forks. Fruit and Seeds: Tiny brown and hidden in the old flower parts. Containing a single seed. Habitat: Roadsides, waste areas, urban areas, bushland edges, lawns. Distinguishing Features: Has foliage which is reddish or purplish compared to green in Alligator weed (Alternanthera philoxxeroides) which also tends to be aquatic or semi-aquatic. Weed Status: Other Weed Weed Type: Environmental, Invasive Garden Escapee Lifeform: Herbaceous

Example images for this weed