Guides / Aquatic

Aquatic

Plants for ponds, freshwater and marine settings.

Illustration of a sacred lotus in flower

A

Arrowhead
Sagittaria sagittifolia
How to grow arrowhead, Sagittaria sagittifolia, at a pond margin. Planting depth, its arrow-shaped leaves, and the underwater tubers ducks dig up.
Moderate

B

Bogbean
Menyanthes trifoliata
How to grow bogbean, Menyanthes trifoliata, at a pond margin or bog garden. Planting depth, its fringed spring flowers, and why it needs poor, boggy ground.
Moderate
Brazilian Waterweed
Egeria densa
How to grow Brazilian waterweed, Egeria densa, as an oxygenating pond and aquarium plant, and why it is banned or restricted in many countries.
Easy

C

Common Duckweed
Lemna minor
How to grow, or control, common duckweed, Lemna minor. Why it spreads so fast, what keeps it in check, and what it is good for.
Easy

E

Eelgrass
Zostera marina
What eelgrass, Zostera marina, needs to survive, why it cannot be grown in a garden pond, and what its decline means for coastal wildlife.
Difficult

P

S

Sacred Lotus
Nelumbo nucifera
How to grow sacred lotus, Nelumbo nucifera, in a pond or tub. Planting the tuber, why leaves shed water perfectly, and overwintering it through frost.
Moderate

W

Y