Pickerelweed

(Pontederia cordata)

Native

Pickerelweed has elongated heart–shaped leaves with violet-blue flowers.

Description

Bright green leaves are straight, triangular, and can be egg-shaped to sword-shaped. Pickerelweed leaves are twice as long as they are wide. At the base they are heart-shaped or cut off and up to three-fourths of an inch wide. Straight flower spikes are up to six inches long with violet-blue or white flowers that have a short life cycle. The flowers of pickerelweed are funnel-shaped and have two lips. Fruits are thin and bladder-like with one seed. Thick, creeping rhizomes are rooted in mud with stems up to three feet tall.

Location

Pickerelweed is common throughout the eastern half of the United States.

Propagation

Seeds, rhizomes