In riparian soils and near shady trees,
I’m a low-lying plant with blotchy white leaves.
I escape from gardens and plant baskets too,
Spreading by seed, stolon, and root.
Yellow Lamium is an invasive species commonly found in planter baskets with pretty green and white mottled leaves. However, despite its pretty appearance, this species is not a nice one to have in your garden. Yellow Lamium spreads quickly, outcompeting native species and decreasing biodiversity.
Native to Europe, Yellow Lamium was brought to North America as a garden ornamental. Due to its pretty leaves, this species is still found commonly in garden centres which only aids in its spread. Yellow Lamium is now found throughout the Lower Mainland and up into the Sea to Sky. It prefers full shade and moist soils that are high in organic matter content. It is commonly seen in parks, forested areas, greenbelts, and ravines as well as in gardens as groundcover.
Even without its stalks of yellow flowers with hooded upper petals, Yellow Lamium is easily identifiable due to its green and white mottled leaves. The oval-shaped leaves are covered in short hairs, making them slightly fuzzy to the touch. Yellow Lamium has square stems (like other members of the mint family) that grow 30 – 60cm long and produces stolons, or modified roots, that grow outwards and give rise to new individuals. These stolons can grow up to 1 m per year.
Yellow Lamium reproduces mainly vegetatively, and occasionally by seed. Besides stolons that give rise to new individuals, fragments of stem or root can also grow into new plants. These stem and root fragments are easily dispersed by wind and people, making long-distance spread simple for Yellow Lamium. The transport (or dumping) of contaminated soil has also been known to cause the spread of many invasive species.
Yellow Lamium’s shade tolerance makes it a fierce competitor in shaded environments. Crawling over the surrounding plants, it outshades and kills off native plants, reducing our local biodiversity. Its extensive root system also crowds out other plants below ground.
Yellow Lamium is sometimes confused with the invasive Goutweed. Goutweed, like Yellow Lamium, has variegated leaves, but its leaves are comprised of 3 leaflets, and it has white flowers in umbrella-shaped clusters rather than yellow flowers.
Per SSISC’s Invasive Plants Priority List, Yellow Lamium is listed as a species to strategically control in Squamish and to contain in Whistler and Pemberton. We rely heavily on reports from the public to understand the current distribution of plants in the Sea to Sky and prevent their spread. With that in mind, we invite you to keep your eyes peeled for Yellow Lamium and report any sightings.
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