Lythrum portula, water purslane, is a creeping mat-forming annual herb, with horizontal creeping pinkish stems. The stems can root whereever leaf bearing stems touch the soil. It is native to Europe and western Asia.
Foliage
The simple pinkish paired leaves have a short petiole. Leaves are obovate or suborbicular and from 0.1-0.5 in x 0.07-0.3 in (3-12 × 2-8 mm) long by wide. They are somewhat succulent and arranged oppositely along the stem.
Flowers
The white to rose pink flowers are broadly bell-shaped. It flowers in summer.
Fruit
The seed are from 0.019-0.024 in (0.5-0.6 mm) long. Seeds are flat on one face, convex on the other. Fruits mature in the autumn.
Ecological Threat
L. portula is usally found growing on bare mud along the edges of bodies of water such as drying ponds and lake margins.