Right here’s a gorgeous plant, an invasive alien, that I’ve no longer noticed in Pittsburgh however is straightforward to seek out in Lancaster County, PA the place I took this image.
Beefsteak plant (Perilla frutescens) is a member of the mint circle of relatives local to Southeast Asia and the Indian highlands and is grown as a crop for Jap, Korean and Chinese language delicacies. Its not unusual names come with shiso and Korean perilla. The “beefsteak” title used to be coined as a result of the darkest types have leaves as purple as meat. The wild crops I noticed in Lancaster County had inexperienced leaves and darkish purple stems.
Perilla frutescens is extensively cultivated in Asia as an safe to eat plant however it has downsides together with touch dermatitis from touching the leaves and anaphylaxis after eating a considerable amount of seeds. Those that domesticate it know what to do however the remainder of us will have to be wary.
Dropped at the U.S. as a decorative beefsteak plant escaped to the wild and is now invasive in six states from Pennsylvania to Tennessee. The plant is at all times poisonous to livestock, horses and different ruminants together with white-tailed deer.
Since deer don’t consume it, it should were touted as a “deer resistant” plant on the nursery however don’t purchase it! This plant spreads manner too simply.
(credit are within the captions with hyperlinks the place acceptable)