Sagittaria latifolia – Duck Potato

Characteristics: herbaceous perennial with broad arrowhead-shaped leaves that grow on runners with tubers, flowers with 3 white petals, flowers arranged in a whorl around the stem

Flowers: July – September

Fruit: ball-shaped, green nutlet

Growth: up to 4 feet, rapid rate of spread (up to 1 ft per year)

Shade: full sun (tolerates partial shade)

Habitat: fresh tidal and nontidal marshes, swamps, stream, pond and lake edges, forested seeps

Hydrology: obligate wetland, fresh water less than 0.5 ppt, regularly to permanently inundated up to 2 ft. or saturated approximately 26 to 100% of the growing season

Range: New Brunswick to British Columbia, south to Florida, California and Mexico

Comments: Seeds, tubers, and plants are food for wildlife such as canvasback duck, gadwall, scaup, black duck, mallard duck, pintail, ring-necked, duck trumpeter swan, whistling swan, rail, muskrat, and beaver.  Mallards and muskrat can rapidly consume tubers in an area. Duck potato can transpire large amounts of water.