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Water hyacinth

Water hyacinth
Photo: Adrian Harvey, Department of Primary Industries and Regions, South Australia
Invasive Plant
Water hyacinth
Eichhornia crassipes*
 

This plant floats on the surface of fresh water as its round shiny leaves to 10 cm wide have thick stalks inflated with air. Masses of black feathery roots trail below the plant. It produces clusters of pale mauve flowers on erect stems to 8 cm long in summer.  Water hyacinth is sometimes sold as an ornamental for garden ponds. 

 

HOW IT SPREADS

Plants dumped into water bodies such as dams or the backwaters of the River Murray can multiply by forming new leaf rosettes on runners. Infestations cover the surface completely, shading out submerged plants and depriving waterlife of oxygen.

 
 
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Additional suggested alternatives: Remuremu (Selliera radicans)

 

Alternative Plants

Duckweed
Photo: Nursery & Garden Industry South Australia & Tupelo Grove
Alternative Plant Duckweed
Lemna minor
Aquatic Plants
 
Duckweeds are tiny, free-floating plants that are native to Australia. They include the smallest flowering plants on Earth. Duckweeds have tiny, white, barely visible flowers, and spread mainly by fragments.
 
Duckweed can form a dense green mat on the surface of a slow-moving or stationary water body in nurtrient rich conditions. They are an important food source for birds and aquatic animals. 
Running marsh-flower
Photo: Tupelo Grove Nursery
Alternative Plant Running marsh-flower
Villarsia reniformis, V. umbricola
Aquatic Plants
 
This yellow flowering Australian native plant does well in damp conditions or submerged in shallow water with bright light or full sun. V. reniformis has a tall flower spike up to 40cm with multiple flowers in late Spring and early Summer displaying attractive glossy green leaves.
Water fern
Photo: Nursery & Garden Industry South Australia & Tupelo Grove
Alternative Plant Water fern
Azolla filiculoides
Aquatic Plants
 
Azolla is a native aquatic plant found in still or slow-moving water bodies. Azolla appears green or red depending on exposure to the sun. In shaded conditions the leaves are usually green, whilst in direct sunlight they become reddish.zolla is a common free floating fern up to 10 to 30 millimetres in diameter with roots hanging down to about 40 millimetres below the water surface. Azolla fronds float on the surface of the water individually or as large mats.  
 
Azolla takes up the nutrients in the water to enable it to grow, and therefore restricts the nutrients available for the growth of other nuisance plants and algae. It is a useful pond plant as it provides habitat for aquatic life as well as reduced water evaporation rates and temperatures.
 
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