Small Pondweed
Other Common Names: baby pondweed, narrow leaf pondweed, lesser pondweed, least pondweed
(Potamogeton pusillus)
Native
Small pondweed produces only submersed leaves that are light green and nearly three inches long and less than a quarter inch wide.
Management Options
Click here for more information on how to control small pondweed.
Description
Small pondweed does not produce floating leaves. The submersed leaves are light green, pointed or blunt, and grow to nearly three inches long and less than a quarter inch wide. The flowers are whorled around the stalk and spaced apart slightly. They are less than one-tenth of an inch long on a submerged flower stalk. The stems are thin and branch profusely.
There are multiple types of fine leaved pondweed in the “pusilli” group, and they look similar in many ways. Small pondweed is the most commonly occurring of the group. A pair of raised glands where the leaves attach to the stem is one characteristic that sets this plant apart from the others in its group. Like many other pondweeds, the fruits and seeds of small pondweed are a food source for a variety of ducks.
Location
Small pondweed can be found across the United States.
Propagation
rhizomes, tubers, winter buds
Management Options
Click here for more information on how to control small pondweed.