One of the most important steps in creating a truly balanced ecosystem pond are aquatic plants.  Adding plants is one of the most important steps of creating your water garden.  They add beauty, colors and dimension to your pond. Without aquatic plants, your pond would not be able to function as a complete ecosystem. Lucky for us all, there are plenty of different options and types of plants.

Aquatic plants balance the pond’s ecosystem and provide valuable biological filtration that removes nitrogen, ammonia, nitrates and other minerals from pond water. These excess nutrients are often the cause of unsightly water conditions. The end result helps to minimize pond maintenance, leaving more time to enjoy your pond. Ideally, thirty to sixty percent of the water surface should be covered with aquatic plants.

Aquatic plants can be classified into a few main categories: water lilies, marginal plants, floaters and submerged (also known as oxygenators). Plants are usually one of two basic types– “tropical” and “hardy.” Hardy plants will over-winter in colder climates and tropical plants are more suited to warmer climates, although tropical plants are often used as annuals in colder climate zones.

Water Lilies

When people think of water gardens, they usually picture them with water lilies.  Water lilies are often the focal point of a water garden and are the most popular of all aquatic plants. Not only are water lilies breathtaking but they provide valuable shade, which helps to keep the pond cool while providing a place for the fish to escape from the sun, predators and the heat.

Floaters

Talk about a good name!  Floating plants do just that—they float on the water. Their roots are below the water, allowing the plants to get their nutrients from the water.  Floating plants are great because they help filter nutrients directly from the water, not the soil below.

Marginals

The plant group that includes marginals is the largest plant group, including both hardy and tropical plants. Most of them are true perennials and come back year after year, like your favorite Daylily or Black-Eyed Susan. Marginal plants serve many functions such as adding beauty and providing valuable filtration.

Marginal plants get their name “marginals” because they typically grow around the edges or “margins” of a pond or lake. Marginal plants thrive in wet soil or standing water that covers the crown or base of the plant by as little as two inches and up to as much as six inches. Some examples of marginals include sweet flag, marsh marigold, taro, canna, water iris and creeping Jenny.

Submerged

Just like with the floaters, this name sounds just like it is.  This group of plants does live below the water surface.  They are amazing oxygenators, producing oxygen mostly during the day. These plants live mostly under water all the time.  Some of them do occasionally bloom and when this happens, their flowers may raise to the water surface. For the most part, submerged plants absorb their nutrients directly from the water. This means they compete with algae for nutrients, thereby helping to balance the ecosystem. Submerged plants include: elodea, anacharis, hornwort, foxtail, cabomba and vallisneria.

Putting it All Together

Like any garden, a good mix of aquatic plants is always best.  This will be the mostly visually appealing.  Take your time and do some plant research.  Look at all the different types of plants and pick a nice variety for best water garden ecosystem results.  Contact us for more information.