Eastern Forest Threat Center - Dame's Rocket

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Dame's rocket flowers

Dame's rocket flowers

Leslie Mehrhoff, University of Connecticut, Bugwood.org

Dame's Rocket
Hesperis matronalis

Dame’s rocket, native to Eurasia, was introduced into North America in the 1600s.

Keywords: Brassocaceae, herbaceous, biennial, perennial, sharply toothed leaves, fragrant flowers; Common names: dame's violet, mother-of-the-evening

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Threat Description

Dame’s rocket is an erect, herbaceous biennial or perennial in the mustard family that grows 1.5 to 3 feet in height. Its leaves are oblong, sharply toothed, alternately arranged, and decrease in size as they ascend the stem. Fragrant pink, magenta, or white flowers with four petals bloom from May to June in large, loose clusters. Many seeds are produced in long, narrow fruits. The seeds are spread mechanically when the dehiscent fruits open and are also eaten and dispersed by ground-foraging birds. Dame’s rocket grows in moist woodlands, woodland edges, roadsides, railroad rights-of-way, disturbed sites, waste ground, thickets, and open areas. Many people think Dame’s rocket is a native wildflower, so it is planted in gardens and often sold in "native" wildflower mixes. These plants crowd out native vegetation.