Pontederia cordata (Pickerelweed)

Pontederia cordata L.

Pontederia cordata L. var. angustifolia (Pursh) Torr. & Elliott

Pontederia cordata L. var. lancifolia (Muhl. ex Elliott) Torr.

Pontederia cordata L. var. lanceolata (Nutt.) Griseb.

Pontederia lanceolata Nutt.

Pontederia cordata L. var. angustifolia (Pursh) Torr. & Elliot

Pontederia cordata L. var. lancifolia (Muhl. ex Elliot) Torr.

Pickerelweed

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Liliopsida	Monocots (plants with a single seed leaf); includes the lily family
Subclass	Liliidae	Includes lilies, orchids, and many others
Order	Liliales	Includes lilies, tulips, trilliums, greenbriars, and others
Family	Pontederiaceae	Aquatic plants that are “heterostylous”—different members of the same species can have different-appearing flowers
Genus	Pontederia	For Paduan botany professor Guilio Pontedera
Species	cordata	“Heart-shaped”

About plant names...

Pickerelweed is a North American native plant that grows in shallow, quiet water. Pickerel (the fishes) are often found in the same habitat as this plant, presumably the reason for the plant’s name.

Identification: Plants reach 3' (91 cm) in height, some of this height submerged. It produces a spike of blue flowers about 6" (15 cm) long, the spike accompanied by a single leaf. Individual flowers are about ¼" (8.5 mm) long, blue-violet with two yellow spots. Leaves are up to 10" (25 cm) × 5" (12 cm), shaped like arrowheads.

Edibility: Young, partially unfurled leaves can be eaten in salads or cooked as greens. Seeds can be eaten like nuts, or dried and added to granola.

Online References:

Pontederia cordata at Illinois Wildflowers

Pontederia cordata at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Pontederia cordata on the Connecticut Botanical Society's Connecticut wildflowers site

Pontederia cordata at the Missouri Botanical Garden

Pontederia cordata on spes.vt.edu

Pontederia cordata on Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

Pontederia cordata on

Pontederia cordata on islandcreekes.fcps.edu

Pontederia cordata on floridata.com

Pontederia cordata on CalPhotos

Pontederia cordata on eFloras

References:

Peterson, Lee Allen, Peterson Field Guides: Edible Wild Plants of Eastern/Central North America, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1977, p. 136

7/18/2010 · Great Brook Farm State Park, Carlisle, Massachusetts
≈ 22 × 16" (56 × 41 cm)

8/1/2010 · Lake Messalonskee, Belgrade, Maine · By Constance B. Kent

8/11/2009 · Townsend, Massachusetts ID is uncertain

7/18/2010 · Great Brook Farm State Park, Carlisle, Massachusetts
≈ 4 × 6" (10 × 15 cm)

Pontederia cordata description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

7/18/2010 · Great Brook Farm State Park, Carlisle, Massachusetts
≈ 24 × 16" (62 × 41 cm)

7/18/2010 · Great Brook Farm State Park, Carlisle, Massachusetts
≈ 4 × 6" (11 × 14 cm)

8/7/2016 · Jeff Smith Trail, Jewett St., Pepperell, Massachusetts

8/1/2010 · Lake Messalonskee, Belgrade, Maine · By Constance B. Kent

8/16/2016 · John Tinker Trail, Nashua River, Groton, Massachusetts

7/18/2010 · Great Brook Farm State Park, Carlisle, Massachusetts
≈ 10 × 14" (24 × 34 cm)

Range: Zones 4-11:

About this map...