Yellow Pond Lily
Nuphar polysepalum
Description: This pretty aquatic plant comes from massive, ancient looking rhizomes, its leaves are usually floating but may also be submerged or emergent, they are heart-shaped, leathery and shiny green, 10-45cm long. Large yellow flowers are usually tinged with red (or green) and grow to 10cm across, petals are cup - shaped and waxy and are seen floating on the water. Produces ribbed oval capsules after flowering.
Ecology: Grows in ponds, shallow lakes, swamps, and sluggish streams at low and middle elevations.
Notes: This one was found at middle-high elevation in a slow moving stream below a beaver dam on the Sunshine Coast, BC, June 2001.
Notes: The roots were, and still are often used by native peoples for illnesses such as colds, chest pains, tuberculosis, ulcers and more. Seeds were used as food by some native groups.
Cattail
Typha latifolia
Description: 1-2cm wide, flat leaves that are long and narrow, slightly spongy and pointed on the ends. They are arranged alternately. Produces numerous tiny flowers in a prominent cylindrical spike. The upper portion is covered with male flowers that eventually disintegrate leaving the stem tip bear. Lower portion is thick, brown, sausage-like, it is covered with persistent female flowers.
Ecology: Common in marshes, ponds, ditches, lake edges, and any other slow moving water at low and middle elevations.
Notes: The tuberous roots can be pounded and sifted and made into an edible flour any time of the year; be sure not to gather from stagnant water which may contain parasites. The seed heads can also be made into a flour, when young they can be toasted and eaten.
Water Plantain
Alisma plantago-aquatica
Description: 70-125cm tall perennial from a thick bulb like stem, small white or pinkish flowers in open branched terminal clusters; flowering stem is leafless. Basal leaves have long stalks, sheathing at the base, they are elliptical in shape with a rounded base, egg-like.
Ecology: Grows in marshy areas, wet ditches, and lake shores, found at low elevations. They may be emergent or may be submerged; or they may be in ditches or natural areas were they are submerged at times and emerged at other times.
Notes: This picture was taken in a small geographic depression beneath the power lines near Sechelt, BC.
Narrow Leaved Bur Reed
Sparganium angustifolium
Description: Aquatic submerged or floating perennial from rhizomes with long floating alternate leaves almost as narrow as the stems. Tiny greenish globular flower heads, 2-5 small male heads are stalkless, at stem tip. 2-4 female heads are larger, to 1-2cm when mature, and found below the male heads on the same stem, the bottom ones have stalks, the top ones are stalkless.
Ecology: Found in ponds, slow streams, and lake sides at low to middle elevations, occasionally subalpine.
Notes: This one was found in Lyon Lake in the Caren Range Mountains, a lake in an Old Growth Forest at moderately high elevation, summer 2002.
Watershield
Brasenia shreberi
Description: Aquatic perennial covered with a gelatinous sheath, excluding the almost leathery upper surface of the floating leaves. Alternate leaves arise from near top of stem, are 3-12cm long, elliptic and are attached in the centre on 5-40cm long stalks. Single purplish 2-3cm flowers on long stalks arising from leaf axis, 3-4 narrowly oblong sepals and petals.
Ecology: Found mostly at low elevations but also at middle elevations in ponds and sluggish streams.
Notes: These ones were found in Klein Lake near Egmont, BC, summer 2002.
Bog Bean
Menyanthes trifoliate
Description: An aquatic or semi-aquatic perennial that grows to 30cm tall from thick submerged rhizomes. Alternate leaves are divided into 3 elliptic leaflets. White or purplish tinged white flowers are frilly and hairy and have a strong unpleasant smell that is very attractive to flies, bees and beetles. Oval capsules are smooth and shiny with several seeds in each.
Ecology: Grows on lake shores, in ponds, fens, marshes and bogs from low to middle elevation.
Notes: This plant is also known as the buckbean and was used by many different native tribes to treat a variety of ailments from stomach problems, fever, migraines, to eliminate intestinal worms and promote appetite. Emetic and cathartic in large doses. It was used externally to treat ulcerous wounds. The bog bean is a common plant, even found occasionally in roadside ditches and swamps. This group was found on a shallow lake shore of one of the Lyon Lakes, a high elevation lake system in the Caren Range Mountains, July 2006 photo.
Marsh Cinqfoil
Potentilla palustris
Description:Tall perennial from long creeping woody rhizomes. Alternate lower leaves pinnately divided into 5-7 oblong toothed leaflets. Upper leaves are smaller. Reddihs purple 2cm flowers are showy, with sepals and 5 petals, few to several in loose terminal clusters. Produces egg shaped buoyant achenes.
Ecology: Grows in wet locations partially submerged in marshes, bogs, wet meadows, creeksides, fens and marshes from low to middle, sometimes high elevation.
Notes: This one was found growing on the edge of a bog where the water pours into the bog from Carlson Lake, summer 2006 photo.
Verticulate Water Milfoil
Myriophyllum verticullatum
Description: Aquatic perennial from rhizomes, whorled leaves with pinnately divided floral bracts. Similar in appearance to M. spicatum – the Eurasion Water-Milfoil that is choking out lakes and reservoirs throughout our region.
Ecology: Found in lakes, ponds, and slow moving streams from low to middle elevations.
Notes: Often difficult to distinguish from Eurasion Water Milfoil and Siberian Water-Milfoil. This one was found growing in Carlson Lake at middle elevation.
Grass Leaved Pondweed
Potamogeton gramineus
Description: Aquatic perennial from slender rhizomes, stems are submerged with alternate lance shaped leaves on submerged stalks and elliptic or oblong shiny 2-7cm long floating leaves at the surface. Flowers are tiny inconspicuous stalked spikes, produces short beaked single seeded achenes.
Ecology: Common in ponds, lakes and slow moving streams at low to high elevations.
Notes: These ones were growing in Carlson Lake, they seem to be quite abundant in shallower water areas.
