Water Garden Plants
Water Garden Plants - Adding aquatic plants to a home pond creates a beautiful environment. Learn about different plant options and care techniques, filtration plants and more.
Water Garden Plants also known as Aquatic Plants, add beauty to your pond. They have other benefits as well, such as helping to keep oxygen in the water and shading your pond, which is good if you have Japanese Koi or other fish living in your pond.
Aquatic Plants come in several different varieties. Following are a few of the most popular varieties with information that you may find helpful.
Water Garden Plants: Tropical Lilies
These are very beautiful and are probably the most popular of all water garden plants. They require 6 to 8 hours of sun each and get very large, beautiful flowers that are held above the water surface.
They need daytime temperatures of at least 75 degrees consistently and they can't take temperatures that go below 65 at night. If you desire them in a cold climate pond you will have to bring them indoors over winter.
These don't shared quite the beauty of the Tropical Water Lilies, but are very pretty in their own right. They die back in the fall and sprout new growth each spring. What that means is that you can keep them in the pond over the winter months.
They can survive in water as deep as 8 to 10 feet. Water lilies help to control the water temperature of the pond by supplying shade. Try to cover at least 60 to 75 percent of your pond water surface with lily pads.
There are many varieties of this water garden plant available with differing water temperature requirements, so choose wisely.
Both the leaves and the flowers of the Lotus are amazing - they are also very large, and take up a lot of pond real estate, so know what their ultimate size will be to see if you have enough room before adding them to your pond!
Water Garden Plants - Floating Plants
These water garden plants are also referred to as bog plants. They consist of plants like Iris, Cattail, Bamboo, Rush and Papyrus.
Most need about 3 hours of sun per day. They thrive in shallow water, up to 6 to 8" deep, so you'll want to place them on the step or shelf of your garden pond if you have one.
These are beneficial plants for your water garden. They provide much-needed oxygen to the water. They also control the growth of both planktonic algae and filamentous string algae.
These consist of varieties such as Water Hyacinths and Floating Hearts. Their roots hang below the plant, effectively scrubbing the pond water.
Growth of these plants should be carefully watched though, as they can and do completely take over a pond due to their rapid growth. If your pond receives full sun, be prepared to clean them out a couple times a year.
Before you choose your water garden plants, it's important to consider the requirements. These will vary by plant, but make sure you always check the requirements and make sure your pond climate meets them. There's nothing worse than spending your money on plants, only to have them die!
Following, you'll find some typical requirements that you'll want to pay attention to.
Typically they are categorized as full sun, partial sun, and shade.
Basically the plants are split into Hardy and Tropical. Tropical will not survive any cold temperatures if left outside. Hardy plants will last through the winter just fine.
Many varieties will grow in a wide range of water depths and others require a much narrower water depth. Most lilies adapt well. You will find bog plants will grow much better in their narrow range of water depths.
Pay close attention to this requirement. If you try to put shallow water plants in deep water, there is no possible way they will thrive.
You can enjoy shallow water plants, even with a deep pond, by using a shelf on the side of your pond, or adding something in the pond for the plants to sit on.
Water Garden Plants - Hardy Lilies
Just as with land-bound plants, the PH level in the water affects the ability for aquatic plants to take in nutrients.
Carefully measure your water PH levels to make sure you are meeting your plants needs. Any water garden will benefit greatly from the introduction of aquatic plants and you'll enjoy the beauty that they bring.
Keep their growth under control and your pond will look great and the fish will love it. They are key to keeping the water balanced for the optimal environment for Japanese Koi and minimizing algae growth.
Water Garden Plants - Water Canna
Following is a list of water garden plants for you to consider:
| Deep Water Plants | Latin Name |
|---|---|
| Hardy Water Lilies | Nymphaea spp. |
| Lotus | Nelumbo spp. |
| Tropical Water Lilies | Nymphaea spp. |
| Oxygenators | Latin Name |
|---|---|
| Anacharis | Elodea canadensis |
| Cabomba | Cabomba caroliniana |
| Dwarf Sagittaria | Sagittaria natans |
| Vallisneria | Vallisneria americana |
| Water Milfoil | Myriophyllus spp. |
| Floating Plants | Latin Name |
|---|---|
| Azollo | Azollo spp. |
| Duckweed | Lemna spp. |
| Water-meal | Wolffia spp. |
| Water Ferns | Salvinia minima |
| Water Hyacinth | Eichhornia crassipes |
| Water Lettuce | Pistia stratiote |
| Water Poppy | Myriophyllus spp. |
| Floating Plants | Latin Name |
|---|---|
| Arrowhead | Sagittaria sagittifolia |
| Bog Lily | Crinum americanum |
| Bull Rush | Scirpus spp. |
| Canna | Canna hybrids |
| Cattails | Typha spp. |
| Chameleon Plant | Houttuynia cordata |
| Chinese Water Chestnut | Eleocharis tuberosa |
| Golden Club | Orontium aquaticum |
| Creeping Primrose | Ludwigia palustris |
| Dwarf Bamboo | Dulichium arundinaceum |
| Dwarf Sweet Flag | Acorus gramineus |
| Egyptian Paper Reed | Cyperus papyrus |
| Floating Heart | Numphoides peltata |
| Hairgrass | Eleochairs aricularis |
| Horsetail | Equisetum hyemale |
| Lizards Tai | Saururus cernus |
| Marsh Marigold | Caltha palustris |
| Papyrus | Cyperus haspans |
| Parrot Feather | Mycriophyllum aquatica |
| Pennywort | Hydrocotyle spp. |
| Pickerel Rush | Pontederia cordata |
| Sagittaria | Sagittaria spp. |
| Spider Lily | Hymenocallis spp. |
| Spike Rush | Eleocharis montevidensis |
| Snowflake | Nymphoides spp. |
| Taro | Colocasia spp. |
| Thalia | Thalia dealbata |
| Umbrella Palm | Cyperus alternifolius |
| Variegated Sweet Flag | Acorus calamus variegate |
| Water Arum | Peltandra virginica |
| Water Clover | Marsilea mutica |
| Water Cress | Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum |
| Water Iris | Iris spp. |
| Water Hawthorne | Aponogeton distachyus |
| Water Swan | Alisima gramineum |
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