- Floating Pond Plants - Parrots Feather, Red Stemmed Parrots Feather, Sensitive Plant, Water Hyacinth, Water Lettuce.
Floating pond plants - These are the most desirable addition to the watergarden as they provide surface cover, shade the pond water and provide a place for fish to escape the mid-day sun.
Floating plants use nutrients from the water competing with algae to help keep the pond clear. They don't require planting because their roots actually feed directly from the water! They do this at such a fast rate that it is not unusual for them to cover the surface of the water in as little as a few weeks time. It is this rapid growth and removing undesirable ammonia and nitrates from the water that makes them so important in keeping a healthy, clean and clear water garden.
*If you have Koi it may be a challenge to keep the plant growth as fast as the destruction of them by your Koi. Koi will nibble on some varieties and consider them tasty snacks between feedings. Time will tell if you have enough plants to start with.
How to plant Floating Pond Plants: Just place on top of the pond water with the exception of the Parrot's Feather and Red Stemmed Parrot's Feather which need to be weighted with a light rubber band around the stems and a fishing sinker clipped to it. The plants will spread out across the surface of the pond.
For great water quality you should have 40-50% of your pond's surface planted.
Say the pond graphic above is 8' x 10' which is 80 sq'. Since we want 1/2 planted, that equals 80/2 or 40 sq'. We know that we need about 1 to 2 plants per sq' that we want to cover. That is 40 sq' divided by 2 which is 20. So then, 20 is the magic number for how many plants (bunches) we need. 1 bunch equals a big handful with floating and submerged plant orders.
The shortcut to all of this is to divide your total surface area in square feet by 4. So, if your pond is 8' x 10' it is 80 sq' and 80/4 = 20 Plants (Bunches) -
Quick Guide to Order Right Amount of Floaters or Submerged Plants
Your Pond Size
1 Plant = 1 Bunch
Width'
Length'
Square Ft.
Your Ponds Total Square Ft.∕4
5
8
40
40/4 =
10 bunches
8
10
80
80/4 =
20 bunches
10
10
100
100/4 =
25 bunches
10
16
160
160/4 =
40 bunches
12
20
240
240/4 =
60 bunches
100+ Floating Oxygenator Plants? Contact Us for Discounts
Water Hyacinth - Amazing Water Purification Properties
NASA - Over 30 years ago, NASA saw tremendous potential for water hyacinth to purify water on long space voyages and launched studies on the plant. As a result of these studies they found that this plant could save millions of dollars by being used in waste treatment facilities to purify water. This attests to the awesome power of the water hyacinth root system to absorb impurities. Today the water hyacinth is used in many cities wastewater plants and is planned for more. Disneyworld cleans all of their waste water with them! Imagine what they can do for your pond.
CAUTION - Water hyacinth is an extremely invasive plant if released into the natural environment. PLEASE make sure you restrict them to your own private applications and insure that you dispose of extra plants carefully.
JUMBO WATER HYACINTH
JUMBO Water Hyacinth - These are monsters. With the JUMBOS you get instant coverage and water filtration. If you want maximum coverage for the least cost this is the way to go. They average about 1 foot wide by about 16 inches high. That is just 1 PLANT! Just take them out of the box and float on the top of your pond water in a shaded area at first. Then move them to sun. The water hyacinth feeds off of the nutrients in the water. It is hard to conceptualize how nice and big these plants are. The only way I can properly explain it is to compare it to having a bare dirt yard, and then having your yard sodded. It is a very dramatic change.
If you want 1 whole box (about 25 plants) we will discount your order by 15% if you live east of the Mississippi and 10% if you live west of the Mississippi.
*As most of you experienced water gardener's know, you NEED to keep them shaded at first to keep the plants from getting burnt before the root system starts pumping new fluids to the leaves. Being dormant during shipping dries the root system out. If you burn them from full sun on the first day they will be stunted and not grow. But once the root system starts pumping you can put them anywhere you wish. This is especially important for water lettuce and hyacinth.
** New pond installations need to have nutrients in the water for floating plants to survive. If your pond is brand new and doesn't have any nutrients you will need to add some water soluble fertilizer until the natural ecology of the pond starts to produce waste.
Koi Warning - Koi love to nibble on water hyacinth and other floating plants. The dense mat of root tips serves to protect baby koi. Some of our customers get 2 or 3 boxes (25 Jumbos) a year just to keep their Koi happy. You can make a holding pen like the picture above to grow the hyacinth and once a month pull the root masses apart and throw some of the plants into the main pond with the koi. The pen will have new growth in the warm months and will self propagate.
Water Hyacinth (Eichornia crassipes) Also Known as "Blue Shell" A beautiful plant for the water garden. It has a purple flower and is a prolific grower and helps keep pond water clear. *Restricted in some states, know your state regulations.
Water Lettuce (Pistia stratioes) This is also called shellflower. The plant has pale green leaves and is a fast grower. In Northern climates winter over inside. *Restricted in some states, know your state regulations.
Red Stemmed Parrot's Feather (Myriophyllum) Dwarf variety of Parrot's Feather has brilliant red stems. *Restricted in some states, know your state regulations.
Parrot’s Feather (Myriophyllum aquatica) This feathery lime-green plant is beautiful to look at. A very quick grower. *Restricted in some states, know your state regulations.
How much is a "Bunch?" A bunch is standard terminology for some floating plants. 1 bunch spreads out on water about the size of a small plate. In the case of Parrots Feather, one bunch is reasonable handful. Imagine a nursery worker grabbing a handful and that is 1 bunch. In the case of other floating plants, a bunch could be 1 plant with several shoots that lay on the water the size of a small plate.
Sensitive Plant (Neptunia aquatica) The fern-like leaves close when touched. Plant floats on the water’s surface. It has yellow flowers. *Restricted in some states, know your state regulations.
Giant Sensitive Plant (Aeschynomene fluitans) Easy to grow. Plant floats on the water’s surface. It has yellow flowers. *Restricted in some states, know your state regulations.
Floating Plant Sampler Package
12 Plants - Most varieties on this page. Do a test this year and see which type works best in your part of the country. *Restricted in some states, know your state regulations. **If we run out of stock of a plant in the sampler, we will substitute a plant of similar value.
* Restricted Pond Plants: Some states have restrictions or bans on pond plants. Contact your local government for a list of restricted plants. The buyer needs to be aware of any regulations on plants that may be restricted.
** Pond Plants grow differently depending on where you live: If you took pond plants of the same species and planted them in different climates each plant would grow differently. This is Mother Nature at work. We guarantee all of our plants will arrive alive and healthy. We cannot guarantee that your specific location will support long term growth. Over time and experience you will find which pond plants thrive in your USDA Zone
*** We reserve the right to substitute with like plants of equal or greater value unless you specifically request otherwise in the remarks section of your order you submit. This happens almost never though, and if it does happen it is usually in regard to floating and submerged oxygenation plants.
JUMBO WATER HYACINTH
