Leycesteria formosa Wallich (Himalayas) – A very rare but increasing, locally naturalizing escape from cultivation. First collected in Tournai (foot of wall in urban environment) in 2006. Recorded in abundance on walls and as a weed on the Campo Santo cemetery in Gent in 2007. Also seen at the foot of a hedge in the city of Kortrijk in 2008 and on a quay wall in Brugge in 2012. A very large, obviously naturalized population was discovered on a woody talus slope of motorway E17 in Kortrijk in 2013. Possibly overlooked elsewhere.
Leycesteria formosa produces purplish-black berries that are very attractive to birds. Birds obviously are mainly responsible for its dispersal. So far, it has only been recorded in urban areas in Belgium (see also van der Meijden 2005). It is an undesirable city weed and usually readily removed. Elsewhere in Europe Leycesteria formosa increasingly occurs in remote and natural habitats. It is often considered to be an invasive environmental weed.
Bracts of Leycesteria formosa typically are dark reddish-purple and very conspicuous. However, this only holds true in full sun (see also Bean 1970-1980). Most Belgian plants are found in shady, urban conditions and have greenish bracts.
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Selected literature
Bean W.J. (1970-1980) Trees and shrubs hardy in the British Isles, 4 vols. (8th ed.). J. Murray, London.
Curran P.L. (1967) Lyecesteria formosa Wall. in Co. Kildare. Irish Naturalists' J. 15: 305.
Van der Meijden R. (2005) Heukels’ Flora van Nederland (23e druk). Wolters-Noordhoff, Groningen: 685 p.