Floating pond plants

No matter how enchanting they may look, even the most captivating floating plants are prone to invasive proportions. Luckily, I don't have that problem as my two ponds actually hardly fit into pond proportions, and the second one is more of a puddle. I have envisioned a proper pond in the back yard as a thing to do sometime in the future but so far it has merely remained a vision.

Apart from the miniature water lilies, a few types of horsetail, marsh marigolds, marsh spurge and sweet flag, I also keep a few floating plants. And having in mind that floating plants are often not winter hardy and are in need of great amounts of light and warm temperature, not many survive (some say that they are not even worth all the bother of trying to overwinter them; I never thought of it like that, but keeping them in the basement tanks with low light, only a few lucky ones survive).


While rummaging through the nursery yesterday, I've noticed a new arrival of water plants from Holland. It was time to revive my floating colonies. I've got these three beauties, along with some Watermeal (Wolffia; smallest floating plants), all of them tagged as invasive in many countries:

WATER HYACINTH (Eichhornia crassipes)
known for its inflated stems (airbags) that keep it afloat; the roots are feathery (that's why Kristy and Krusty often mistake it for a birdie-toy) and a purple/white color; bears clusters of lilac flowers during warm weather; form is more compact in full sun and elongated in shady conditions; reported as a weed in 56 countries, explosive growth rate in favorable conditions: doubles its population in as little as 8-16 days ( I bought one last spring and by late fall I had over 50 new plants;
I gave many away to friends, and left about 15 to overwinter, but never bothered to inform myself on the conditions they should actually overwinter in; in low light most of them ballooned off to water hyacinth heaven, and only one survived (barely and is still in the process of getting rid of its shabby looks). From its original home in South America, it was introduced to many places where it grows profusely and out-competes native species, thus reducing natural biodiversity.;frost sensitive; hardy in Zone 9 or higher; eaten by some turtle species

FLOATING MOSS FERN (Salvinia natans)
often grown as an ornamental pond plant, but has escaped cultivation and is noxious in many regions around the globe;
grows best in open sunlight; leaves covered in small hairs; consists of three leaves, two floating ones and a third that serves as a root system; browning leaves are a sign of nutrients insufficiency; air cavities on the leaves make the plant a floating one; prevents algae by shading some areas of the pond and using nutrients in the water; tolerates occasional frost, but not prolonged periods of freezing temperatures

WATER LETTUCE (Pistia stratiotes)
not an owner of a spectacular flower; but a very interesting, ornamental pond plant; bears a floating rosette of light green, spongy leaves; also an invasive plant - several state consider it a curse and have tagged it as 'illegal'; reproduces both vegetatively and by seeds; looks better when grown in partial shade but can be grown in full sun as well; not frost resistant

More makeovers

Before it was systematically ripped out by the furious lady Greenthumb, back in its day the lovely miss Ivy (Hedera helix) was loved in this garden for gracing the walls of an old house. No wonder, since it grows fast, puts up with any number of harsh conditions, quickly covers unsightly wire fences, adds warmth to blank walls and disguises architectural flaws, retaining its lush green colour all year round. Years later the garden was covered in thick ivy blankets, up to the point where miss Ivy had invaded every tree and had grown knee-deep on the ground in areas where virtually no other plants were alive. That's where my green thumb turned into a serial killer. After weeks and weeks of digging about, I rooted the enemy out, leaving only a few crippled troops which were to remain under close scrutiny of my pruning shears. Today they live in shady parts of the garden and make a lovely groundcover. Enough said.

Now to the sunnier part of the garden, which used to be neglected and overgrown with poison ivy, some invasive type of euonymus and other weeds , and even then had a special charm, but what do green thumbs do if not tame another block of garden.

BEFORE

AFTER




What to plant in the shady part of the garden?
I wondered what to do with the darkest part of my garden, under the dense foliage of an old magnolia tree. After strugling with grass, I decided to 'plant' a pond and surround it with sum bog plants, marginals and some lovely plants for shady area including Hostas, Calla lilies and Astilbe.

Pond No.1