On 19 Oct, 03:45, Sacha wrote:
On 19/10/07 10:05, in article
om, "Dave Poole"



wrote:
Sacha wrote:
All these were new in the pond this year - just shows how warm it's been and
how ideal the conditions for these plants. I don't know their botanical
names but to us they are water cabbage ....

Usually called 'Water lettuce' - Pistia stratiotes, although it is a
member of the arum family with tiny greenish, arum-like flowers tucked
between the leaves. It's a very nice thing when growing well although
it can be temporarily invasive. I used to overwinter it in shallow
tubs of mud at around 10C.

.... water hyacinth

Ah the dreaded Eichornia crassipes! Fabulous flowers, but it's a
formidable and worrying pest in tropical regions. It has taken over
entire lakes in Africa where there are few predatory pests to keep it
in check. In its native Amazon basin home it never causes problems,
but when introduced to similar climates elsewhere, Eichornia is a
major scourge blocking out light to the water and causing submerged
water plants to die out, resulting in de-oxygenation of the water and
fish deaths. Growth rates are truly phenomenal, waterways can be
rendered unnavigable by the dense, metre thick carpets of herbage and
the plant is not easily controlled by conventional means.

Not a problem here though - the first hint of cold weather will slow
this and Pistia right down and a couple of frosty night will kill the
plants completely.

.... water forget-me-not

Isn't this Myosotis scorpioides (formerly palustris) ? It's a pretty,
waterside native perennial that should overwinter perfectly well in
any part of the British Isles.

Thanks for all these, David. I've made careful notes! Today, Matthew and
Greg have drained the pond, leaving just enough water for the fish and are
hauling out barrow loads of the plants. The problem now will be to find
enough tanks to over-winter them in the greenhouses! When I think that I
saw just one place selling the water hyacinth for £3.95 each..........!

--
Sachahttp://www.hillhousenursery.co.uk
South Devon
(remove weeds from address)
'We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our
children.'

Saving one plant would be adequate. Would be too much! I bought one
(species unknown) at a department store Garden Shop from a know-
nothing clerk. In a wet window-box it became 6 plants in barely a
month, at which point I sought pics on the WWW and id'd it as "Water
Lettuce." I gave away all but 1 and isolated it in nested tall plastic
pots in a 20 gallon (75 Liter) aquarium. It DESTROYED the aquarium: 1
plant. All kinds of whitish crud exuded under and at the leaf-tips.
When I started emptying the aquarium to clean yesterday, I found it
had partially dissolved the bottom of one plastic pot, in less than a
week!! It now lives (or dies) in a 2 liter pop bottle* with a dead
Avocado. I should put it back in a wet window-box and give it's babies
to my worst enemies.~}

(*) I cut clear/de-labeled 2 liter pop bottles most of the way around
at the part where the top-curve ends: Instant flip-top micro-
greenhouse. Hmm. Maybe too much light on the roots is what killed the
Avocado though.