Sagittaria sagittifolia
Arrowhead
Common names: Common Arrowhead
At a glance
- Light
- Full sun
- Pot size
- from 50 l
- Lifespan
- Perennial
- Flowering
- Jun–Aug
- Hardiness
- Hardy
- Origin
- Native to Germany
Photo: Christian Fischer · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
This description was machine-translated.
Description
Arrowhead (Sagittaria sagittifolia) is a native shallow-water plant easily identified by its distinctive arrow-shaped leaves. From June to August (week 24 to 33) it produces delicate white flower spikes with a dark center above the water surface. Underwater it forms small tubers that have traditionally been used as wild vegetables and add structure to garden ponds. As a margin plant in ponds or wetland beds it provides a natural, native appearance and offers shelter for dragonflies and other aquatic animals.
Care instructions
Plant Arrowhead in nutrient-rich, loamy soil in shallow water zones up to about 30 cm deep, preferably in a container to prevent uncontrolled spread. A sunny to partially shaded location encourages reliable flowering. Trim spent stems in late summer and remove dying leaves in autumn to keep the water clear. The plant is winter-hardy, retreating into its rhizome during cold months; it reliably regrows in spring, around mid-April (week 16). If stands become dense, divide them every few years in spring to prevent overgrowth in the pond.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
FloweringJun–Aug
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
moist, nutrient-rich, loamy, clayey
Arrowhead grows in shallow water or in permanently soaked soil at the water's edge, not in a normal garden bed. It prefers nutrient-rich, loamy to clayey mud, as you find at the edge of a pond or stream. It tolerates lime-free to slightly chalky water well; above all, what matters is constant wetness.
Feeding
Medium feeder
Months
May–Jun
As an aquatic and marginal plant, arrowhead in a natural pond usually manages without extra feeding, because mud and fallen leaves supply enough nutrients. If you want to help along, work some mature compost into the margin or the planting pockets in spring. Avoid quick-dissolving fertilisers, which burden the water and encourage algae growth.
Overwintering
Arrowhead retreats in autumn and overwinters as small, starchy winter buds, known as turions, on the bed of the water. As long as your pond does not freeze solid, the plant is hardy and sprouts again by itself the following spring. In shallow basins, it helps to set the planting baskets a little deeper in the water before hard frost.
Propagation
Methods
- Division
- Offsets
The easiest way to propagate arrowhead is to separate the turions and small daughter tubers from the rootstock in spring and plant them individually in planting baskets. Dividing established clumps also works well, as soon as the plant sprouts again in May · weeks 19 to 22. Put the divisions straight back into shallow water so that they do not dry out. This way arrowhead spreads into a lovely stand at the water's edge within a few years.
For your garden
Grow Arrowhead yourself
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