Purslane is a common garden plant that often pops up uninvited in flower beds and vegetable patches. Its succulent leaves and prostrate growing habit lead many to mistake it for a perennial weed. However, purslane is actually an annual plant in most climates. Understanding whether purslane is an annual or perennial is key to effective control and management.
Purslane’s Life Cycle
Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) behaves as a fast-growing annual plant throughout most of its range. It completes its entire life cycle from germination to seed production within a single growing season. Here is a quick overview of purslane’s lifecycle:
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Seeds sprout in spring once soil temperatures reach at least 15°C.
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Within 6-8 weeks after sprouting, purslane begins flowering. Small yellow blooms appear in early to midsummer.
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Each purslane plant can produce up to 240,000 seeds! Seeds mature by late summer.
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At the season’s first hard frost, the annual purslane plant dies off completely. It does not come back the following spring
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However, purslane seeds have tremendous longevity in soil – remaining viable for up to 40 years. So new plants readily sprout each spring from this massive seed bank.
So while individual purslane plants live just one season, the species persists year after year thanks to prolific seed production.
Perennial Behavior in Warmer Climates
The majority of gardeners deal with purslane as a fast-growing summer annual. However, in the warmest zones (9-11), purslane may exhibit perennial tendencies. Where winters stay frost-free, purslane plants can survive year-round. They behave as short-lived perennials in theseregions, coming back from roots and stems season after season.
Even in warm climates, purslane still relies on seeds as its primary means of reproduction. But the occasional perennial plant can persist, especially where gardeners actively cultivate purslane. These perennial purslanes produce fresh growth each spring from overwintering root crowns and stems.
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Throughout most of the U.S., purslane acts as a summertime annual – completing its life cycle in one season.
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Only in the warmest zones with mild winters can purslane sometimes overwinter as a short-lived perennial plant.
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Regardless of climate, purslane depends on its prodigious seed production for long-term survival and spread.
Controlling Purslane in Gardens
Whether annual or perennial, purslane can quickly become a weedy pest in garden beds. Effective control requires understanding its growth habit and lifecycle:
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Hand pull or hoe plants before they go to seed. Even immature plants may produce some viable seeds, so don’t delay!
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Remove every piece of the plant, including broken stems and roots. Purslane can re-root from fragments.
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Mulch garden beds to block light needed for purslane seed germination. Organic mulches like wood chips help starve out each new generation.
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Avoid excessive soil disturbance, as this brings buried purslane seeds to the surface where they can sprout.
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In warm winter regions, treat purslane growing in beds as a perennial weed. Remove root crowns and stems entirely to prevent regrowth.
While difficult to eradicate completely, preventing purslane from going to seed will reduce its spread over time. And as the seed bank in soil declines, this fast-growing annual is easier to manage season by season.
Eating Purslane Greens
Before removing purslane from the garden, consider tasting its nutritious leaves. Purslane has a tangy, succulent texture similar to spinach. All parts are edible both raw and cooked. Purslane contains antioxidants, omega-3’s, and many essential vitamins and minerals. So don’t be too quick to discard this fast-growing “weed”!
Understanding purslane’s growing habits as an annual is key to weed control. But don’t let its annoying seed production put you off it entirely. In moderate amounts, purslane can be a delicious and highly nutritious edible green. Let us know in the comments if you’ve ever tried eating this surprising garden “weed”!
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Purslane (Portulaca umbraticola) is an annual succulent in the family Portulacaceae. Approximately forty cultivars are currently grown. Its specific epithet oleracea means “vegetable/herbal” in Latin and is a form of holeraceus. Also called little hogweed, pigweed, fatweed, and pusley, Purslane is popular for its nutritional and medicinal uses. This succulent is grown as a short-lived perennial in zones 10–11. It can handle drought and has small flowers that bloom in yellow, orange, white, or pink. This pretty trailing succulent grows 4 to 8 inches tall and 12 to 16 inches wide. It’s great for filling in gaps in pots, hanging baskets, or the ground. Blooms best when planted in full sun.
Portulaca is an annual, but can re-seed. An ornamental portulaca often shows up in the landscape, but it’s not nearly as troublesome as its related plant, the purslane.
Purslane plants are extremely easy to grow. In fact, you may have already seen them popping up in your flower or vegetable gardens. This drought tolerant succulent is not picky about soil as long as it is well drained. Choose a spot with full sun and lots of heat, like next to a sidewalk, a brick wall, or in a pot. Space the plants 8-10 inches apart and mulch around the base to control spreading. Water occasionally during dry conditions.
Purslane is a succulent plant, meaning that it thrives in soil that is dry but not parched. It is best to not overdo it with watering. This heat loving plant can easily die if watered too much. It is best to water this plant when the soil an inch below the surface is dry to the touch. As long as the soil is well-draining, an average amount of moisture each time will do. Water at the base of the plant to avoid fungal issues.
The annual is easy to take care of and can handle drought. It looks great in gardens as soon as the weather gets warmer in early summer. The worst thing you can do is overwater the plant, especially if it’s in potting mix. The portulaca will grow leggy or even die if its overwatered.
For some reason, portulacas do better in sun and heat. But 40 degrees F in the middle of May? I can’t wait for these containers at the back of our garden to fill up.
Purslane is one of the easiest plants to care for. Often considered invasive, this plant will grow in some of the worst conditions. Purslane does not need fertilizer to survive. When newly planted, you can add some compost to the soil or a slow release fertilizer. This can enhance growth and encourage better flower production. A standard 20-20-20 fertilizer will do just fine.
Purslane is a fast growing flowering plant. To prevent it from taking over your garden area, trim the plant back 2 inches when needed. Oftentimes, gardeners will harvest the entire succulent even before it flowers. Portulaca will keep blooming and spreading into fall, provided you do one thing: pinch off spent blooms. The energy will go to helping new blooms form. This annual is very easy to deadhead; just pinch off the blooms into your hand when they’re closed up and starting to look dry. If the flower resists, wait a day. You’ll soon recognize the difference between a bud and a spent bloom.
You can see the bloom stages really well in this photo. Behind the bloom, a tiny dried flower can be seen. It’s time to pinch it off! Two new buds are a little lower on either side of the stem. And a faded bloom, nearly ready to pinch, lies at the lower right.
Does Purslane Grow In Shade?
To really thrive and do its best, purslane needs full sun. They also love the heat. But if you want to get flowers to grow, giving the plant some shade or shelter from the sun during the hottest part of the day will help.
Indeed, purslane is a member of the succulent family.
Is purslane a perennial?
What is a purslane plant?
Purslane, scientific name Portulaca oleracea, is an annual, edible succulent plant. It is also called Pusley, Verdolaga, Pigweed, and Hogweed. Purslane has a thick reddish stem and succulent, rounded leaves that grow in clusters. Its flowers are small and yellow, with five petals, and they bloom according to rainfall or moisture.
Is purslane an annual succulent?
Purslane is an annual succulent plant. Purslane, scientific name Portulaca oleracea, is an annual, edible succulent plant. It is also called Pusley, Verdolaga, Pigweed, and Hogweed. Purslane has a thick reddish stem and succulent, rounded leaves that grow in clusters.
What is purslane oleracea?
Purslane, Garden Purslane, Little Hogweed, Pusley, Wild Portulaca, Pourpier, Verdolaga Grown for more than 4,000 years as a food and medicinal plant, Portulaca oleracea (Purslane) is a fast-growing herbaceous annual forming a mat of soft trailing, smooth, reddish stems clothed with fleshy, oval to spoon-shaped, succulent leaves.
Is purslane a healthy plant?
Wild or cultivated purslane is a crawling plant that has leaves that are appreciated for their light lemony taste. Low-calorie content makes it great for salad or cooked like spinach leaves are. And it’s healthy, too! Purslane (a type of rose moss) mostly grows around the Mediterranean ocean and loves heat to truly develop well.