Native or Introduced:
Nutrient Removal Rating:
Rooted or Floating:
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Water pennywort is an herbaceous perennial. It produces tangled, air-filled-horizontal stems that root at the nodes. Stems are round and light green to cream in color. This plant forms large colonies of mat-like growth.
Leaves develop directly from horizontal stems; petioles measure 6-12 inches in length. Petioles attach to the center of the leaf blades. Blades are rounded with heavily notched margins. Veins radiate from the point of petiole attachment. Leaf blades measure 1-2 inches across.
Flowers are small, light green, and star shaped. Flowering stalks terminate in umbels (0.5 inch diameter) of 5-13 flowers.
Water pennywort is found in marshes, at the edges of lakes or ponds, and in muddy soils.
Water pennywort can be distinguished from floating pennywort by differences in leaf characteristics. Floating pennywort has pink disks at the location of petiole attachment while water pennywort has light green disks at the same location.