Weed Control

How to Control Aquatic Weed Types and Aquatic Plants

Ponds grow a variety of pond weed types, many of which look similar. The aquatic weed identification information below lists the most common weed types -- including emergent, submerged, and floating weeds -- to help you explore and identify aquatic weeds in your pond or lake.

For those looking for weed control solutions, Lake Restoration has developed all-in-one pond and lake weed control kits that make it unnecessary to identify the type of weeds in your pond. Feel free to use the information below to facilitate your pond weed identification goals, or contact us today to talk to our customer support team about the right control product for your pond or lake.

Weed Chart

Milfoil

Eurasian watermilfoil has feather-like leaves with 14-20 pairs of leaflets whorled around the hollow stem along the entire length of the plant.

Northern watermilfoil has feather-like leaves with five to 12 pairs of leaflets whorled around the hollow stem along the entire length of the plant.

Water Lettuce

Water Lettuce

Water lettuce often looks like a floating open head of lettuce.

Water Hyacinth

Water Hyacinth

Water Hyacinth has spongy green leaves and purple flowers above the water.

Watermeal

Watermeal

Watermeal is a tiny floating plant that makes swirls across the water and looks like bright green strawberry seeds up close.

Pond Algae

Planktonic algae look like pea soup or spilled paint.

Filamentous algae have an appearance similar to that of stringy hairs or cotton.

Chara algae appears like a submerged plant, but it is not truly rooted to the bottom of the pond or lake.

Starry Stonewort resembles a submerged plant and can be identified by the little white stars amongst the gelatin-green branches.

Duckweed

Duckweed is a small free–floating plant that resembles clovers and has short roots.