Purple Loosestrife is a perennial that blooms from July to September. It is often found in marshes, along rivers, ditches and wet meadows. Usually, areas well suited for cattails are prime habitat for the plant. Once purple loosestrife becomes established, it soon clogs channels which carry water to growing crops. Dense infestations of purple loosestrife also crowd out native plants used by wildlife for food and nesting habitat.

Approved insects like the beetles produced at the Yankton Trusty Unit are released on purple loosestrife infestations. Each female can lay up to 500 eggs during the period of mid-May to mid-July.

Larvae emerge from eggs in 7 to 10 days, then feed and molt for approximately three weeks before moving down into the soil to pupate. It takes around 7 to 10 days for the young adults to emerge, which is typically from July to September. It takes approximately 5 to 10 years of raising and harvesting and releasing the insects to develop a colony that effectively controls an area of purple loosestrife.