Alisma subcordatum
USDA, NRCS. 2018. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 28 March 2018). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC 27401-4901 USA.
Illustrations: USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An illustrated flora of the northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions. 3 vols. Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York. Vol. 1: 94. USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / USDA NRCS. Wetland flora: Field office illustrated guide to plant species. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.
What is American Water Plantain?
Physical Characteristics
Stem:
- 2-4 feet tall
- Many branches
- Spindly
- Strap like
Flowers:
Leaves:
- 4.7 in long
- Elliptic or ovate shaped
- Clump around flower stem
- Dark green
- Reddish pedials
Where Does it Grow?
American water plantain can be found in the quiet and shallow water of marshes or bogs, on muddy banks, or occasionally in wet sand; rarely in streams and ponds.
Pros and Cons of American Water Plantain.
Submerged portions of all aquatic plants provide habitats for many micro and macro invertebrates. These invertebrates in turn are used as food by fish and other wildlife species (e.g. amphibians, reptiles, ducks, etc.). After aquatic plants die, their decomposition by bacteria and fungi provides food (called “detritus”) for many aquatic invertebrates.