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Pontederia cordata

(Pickerel Weed Pickerel Rush)

Common Names

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Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in Afrikaans:

Jongsnoekkruid

Common Names in English:

Blue Pickerel, Pickeral Plant, Pickerel Rush, Pickerel Weed, Pickerel Weed Pickerel Rush, Pickerel-Weed, Pickerelweed

Common Names in French:

Langue Du Boeuf, Pontédérie Cordée

Description

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Genus Pontederia

Herbs, annual or perennial , rooted in mud . Vegetative stems submersed and growing to surface, or rhizomatous . Flowering stems submersed and growing to surface, or emersed and slightly constricted just below first node. Sessile leaves forming basal rosette, blade thin. Petiolate leaves floating or emersed; blade cordate to reniform , apex obtuse to acuminate. Inflorescences spicate , commonly 50 or more-flowered, elongating over many days; spathes folded, apex acute to acuminate; peduncle glandular-pubescent or pilose . Flowers open 1 day only; perianth mauve , blue, or white, funnelform , limb lobes oblong to oblanceolate , glandular-pubescent or pilose, apex obtuse to acuminate; stamens 6, distal 3 shorter than proximal 3; filaments purple, glandular-pubescent; anthers yellow, ovoid to oblong; ovary 3-locular, only 1 developing to maturity; ovule 1; style 1 or more. Fruits utriculate, ovoid, with spinulose , dentate or smooth longitudinal ridges . Seed 1, ovoid, smooth.

Species 6: Western Hemisphere.[1]

Physical Description

Species Pontederia cordata

Plants perennial , rooted in mud . Vegetative stems contracted , rhizomatous . Flowering stems erect , to 120 cm. Sessile leaves: blade linear . Petiolate leaves emersed ; stipule 7-29 cm; petiole distinctly constricted just below blade, to 60 cm; blade lanceolate to cordate, 6-22 × 0.7-12 cm. Spikes with up to several hundred flowers, 2-15 cm; spathes 5-17 cm. Perianth mauve , tube 3-9 mm, limb lobes oblanceolate , 5-8 mm, distal central lobe with 2-lobed yellow spot; proximal stamens 7-13 mm, distal 1.5-6.3 mm; style 3-lobed. Utricles with dentate ridges , 4-6 × 2-3 mm. Flowering Mar--Nov in Florida; flowering season shorter farther north. [source]

Pontederia cordata has a large number of synonyms, at the levels of species, variety, and form (see R. M. Lowden 1973 for most names ). Almost all these names are based on variations in leaf shape , but extensive morphological variation has been observed within single populations and even in individual plants. Study is needed to determine the cause of the extreme leaf base forms of cuneate on lanceolate blades and cordate on ovate blades. Variation has also been observed in peduncle pubescence . A velutinous peduncle and ovate leaf blade with slightly cuneate base is consistently found among some South American populations, hence recognition there of var. ovalis (Martius) Solms. [source]

The reproductive biology of Pontederia cordata has been well studied (R. Ornduff 1966; S. D. Price and S. C. H. Barrett 1982, 1984). It is a tristylous species, and most populations contain all three morphs (S. D. Price and S. C. H. Barrett 1982). At least some degree of self-incompatibility exists, being strongest with the short-style morphs and weakest with the midstyle morphs (R. Ornduff 1966). [source]

Habit: Forb/herb

Flowers: Bloom Period: March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November. • Flower Color: medium blue

Size/Age/Growth

Size: to 30" tall.

Habitat

Pond and lake margins ; 0--500 m [2].

Stream , pond and lake banks.

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 860 meters (0 to 2,822 feet).[3]

Biology

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Reproduction

Duration: Perennial

Growth

Culture: Space 3-6" apart.

Soil: Minimum pH: 4.5 • Maximum pH: .1

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: 3-5 hours full sun recommended.

Moisture: Water Requirements: 0-12" water depth.

Temperature: Cold Hardiness: 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b. (map)

Taxonomy

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Unambiguous Synonyms

  1. Narukila cordata (Linnaeus) Nieuwland
  2. Pontederia angustifolia Pursh
  3. Pontederia cordata var. angustifolia (Pursh) Torr. and Ell.
  4. Pontederia cordata var. lanceolata (Nuttall) Grisebach
  5. Pontederia cordata var. lancifolia (Muhlenberg) Torrey
  6. Pontederia lanceolata Nutt.
  7. Pontederia lanceolata Nuttall
  8. Pontederia. lancifolia Muhlenberg
  9. Unisema cordata (Linnaeus) Farwell


Notes

An accepted name in the RHS Horticultural Database.

Name Status: Accepted Name. Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 15-Mar-2000.

Name verified on 28-Sep-1994 by ARS Systematic Botanists.

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Pontederia

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 59 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

P. alba · P. angustifolia · P. aquatica · P. azurea · P. brasiliensis · P. cernua · P. coerulea · P. cordata (Pickerel Weed Pickerel Rush) · P. cordata 'Alba' (White Pickerel Rush) · P. cordata angustifolia · P. cordata 'Blue Spires' · P. cordata f. albiflora (White Pickerel Weed) · P. cordata lancifolia · P. cordata light blue · P. cordata 'Pink Pons' · P. cordata sagittata · P. cordata 'Singapore Pink' (Pickerel Weed) · P. cordata var. albiflora (Pickerel-Weed) · P. cordata var. cordata (Pickerelweed) · P. cordata var. ovalis (Pickerel-Weed) · P. cordifolia · P. crassicaulis · P. crassipes (Floating Water Hyacinth) · P. dilatata · P. dubia · P. elongata · P. eriantha · P. hastata (Arrowleaf Falsepickerelweed) · P. heterantherimorpha · P. lagoensis · P. lanceolata · P. lancifolia · P. limosa · P. linearis · P. maculata · P. martiana · P. martiusiana · P. mucronata · P. natans · P. nymphaeifolia · P. oblonga · P. ovalis · P. ovata · P. paniculata · P. paradoxa · P. parviflora · P. plantaginea · P. racemosa · P. renniformis · P. rotundifolia (Tropical Pickerelweed Pontederia Rotundifolia) · P. sagittata · P. schomburgkiana · P. stricta · P. subovata · P. triandra · P. tricolor · P. triflora · P. vaginalis · P. vaginata

More Info

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Further Reading

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  • Fernald, M. L. 1925. Pontederia versus Unisema. Rhodora 27: 76-81.
  • Horn, C. N. and R. R. Haynes. 1987. Typification of Pontederia and its Linnaean species names (Pontederiaceae). Taxon 36: 621-625.
  • Lowden, R. M. 1973. Revision of the genus Pontederia L. Rhodora 75: 426-487.
  • Whigham, D. F. and R. L. Simpson. 1982. Germination and dormancy studies of Pontederia cordata L. Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 109: 524-528.
  • Notes

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    Contributors

    Data Sources

    Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 14, 2007:

    Identifiers

    Footnotes

    1. "Pontederia". in Flora of North America Vol. 26 Page 37, 41, 45. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
    2. "Pontederia cordata". in Flora of North America Vol. 26 Page 45, 46. Oxford University Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
    3. Mean = 140.550 meters (461.122 feet), Standard Deviation = 146.690 based on 1,067 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
    Last Revised: 2009-09-02