California Invasive Plant Council

Limonium duriusculum

Synonyms: Statice companyonis; Limonium thiniense; Limonium duriusculum subsp. companyonis; Limonium duriusculum subsp. thiniense

Common names: European sea lavender

Limonium duriusculum (European sea lavender) is a perennial herb (family Plumbaginaceae) with tiny purple flowers and oval-shaped leaves found primarily in the San Francisco Bay area and central and south coast of California. Populations extend into the coast ranges. Limonium duriusculum is similar to another co-occurring, non-native sea lavender (L. ramosissimum) but can be differentiated by its obovate, blunt-tipped leaves and less compactly-arranged flowers. Intermediate forms have been found in the SF Bay area. It is native to the Mediterranean and favors marshes, scrub and chaparral, and riparian and bottomland habitat. It spreads via seed. Human activities and water help disperse the seeds.

Cal-IPC Rating: Moderate

CDFA Rating: B

Cal-IPC Assessment

Plant Assessment Form - Information gathered by Cal-IPC on the impacts, rate of spread, and distribution of invasive plants in California. Does not include management information.

Weed Management Notes

Cal-IPC Newsletter Articles

• Controlling invasive sea lavender in Carpenteria Salt Marsh. Johnson, Doug. Vol 26, Issue 1
• Wildland Weed News. Cal-IPC. Vol 25, Issue 2
• Wildland Weed News. Cal-IPC. Vol 25, Issue 1
• Wildland Weed News. Cal-IPC. Vol 24, Issue 3
• Protecting San Francisco Bay salt marshes from invasive sea lavender. Whitcomb, Amy. Vol 24, Issue 3
• Protecting San Diego wetlands. Cal-IPC. Vol 24, Issue 1

Cal-IPC Symposium Presentations

Presentations are linked where available. Where a presentation is not available, find more information by reading the abstract in the Cal-IPC Symposia Archive.

• California Update. Johnson, Doug (2020)
• European sea lavender (Limonium duriusculum) impact on salt marsh bird’s beak (Chloropyron maritimum subsp. maritimum) floral visitors. Calloway, Stephanie; Knapp, Denise (2019)
• Striking a balance: Selecting strategy levels for a startup invasive Limonium project based on eradication stage and budget. Kerr, Drew (2019)
• Managing invasive sea lavender at Bothin Marsh. Manzanillo, Tatiana (2018)
• New and expanding weeds in California. Kelch, Dean (2012)

Other Limonium duriusculum Information

• CalPhotos - Images of plants taken mostly in California.
• Calflora - See the distribution of this species on Calflora's map of California.
• Jepson Online Interchange for California Flora - Information on taxonomy, biology, and distribution from UC Berkeley's Jepson Herbarium.
• EDDMapS - North American distribution based on Early Detection and Distribution Mapping System.