Floating Primrose

Ludwigia peploides

USDA, NRCS. 2018. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 28 March 2018). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC 27401-4901 USA.
Illustration: 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. 2: 589.

What is Floating Primrose?

Physical Characteristics

Leaves:

• Oval-shaped
• 0.39-3.5 inches long
• 0.2-1.5 inches wide
• Leaf stalk 0.2-1.5 inches long

Flowers:

• 5 sepals, 0.16-0.47 inches long
• Petals 0.28-0.94 inches long
• 10 stamen

Fruit:

• Dry
• 0.39-1.5 inches long
• 0.13-0.16 inches thick

Seeds:

• About 0.05 inches long
• Firmly planted in a cube in the woody part of the fruit

Stem:

• Branching upward
• Up to 2 feet long

Where Does it Grow?

Floating primrose can be found in ponds and streams; they float as mats on the surface of the water.

Pros and Cons of Floating Primrose

Ducks and other waterfowl will consume the seeds of water primrose. 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.