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Wild flowers of the north-eastern states

Chapter 59: PICKEREL-WEED FAMILY. PONTEDERIACEÆ.
By Ellen Miller
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Nature/Gardening/Animals

About This Book

This illustrated manual gathers 308 common wildflowers of the northeastern United States, each drawn life-size and accompanied by plain-language descriptions emphasizing habit, color, and growth rather than technical dissection. Organized by floral families in the sequence of Gray's Manual and arranged for seasonal bloom, entries include leaves, stems, and often whole growth, with occasional shrubs, vines, and fruit shown where notable. Aimed at amateur naturalists, it favors recognizable traits and folk names to ease identification, offers practical notes on variations and habitat, and pairs accurate botanical classification with accessible, pictorial presentation.

PICKEREL-WEED FAMILY.
PONTEDERIACEÆ.

Pickerel-weed.Pontederia cordata.

Found in shallow water from July to September.

The height is variable, from 4 to 6 inches or more. The stalk is stout, round, smooth, and green; it grows with sharp-angled turns below the water.

The leaf is large and arrow-shaped, with a blunt tip; the margin is entire, the fibre tough and leathery, the surface extremely smooth, and the color a dark strong green. The stem is round, large, and sheathes the stalk.

The irregularly 4-parted flower has a short tube; the upper division is erect, broad, and 3-lobed; the 3 lower divisions are long, narrow, and spreading; it has 6 stamens. In color it is a dull bluish violet, the broad division marked with two round greenish-yellow spots. The flowers grow in a thick blunt spike, and bloom spirally; the stem is enfolded about midway by a small sheathing, green leaf.

The flowers are fleeting with the day. In general lines the Pickerel-weed is full of vigor, and strong swinging curves, but there is a primitive lack of finish in its growth.