Categories: Gardening

Oxygenating Pond Plants

Submerged pond plants make pond-keeping easy. Submerged plants keep pond water clear. They act as a filter for particulate matter and trap it until it drops to the bottom or gets rinsed off. They are food for the goldfish. The plants grow faster than the fish can eat them, so you never have to feed your goldfish. They are oxygenators so the fish can breathe. No plant works as hard in your pond as the ones you rarely see or even notice.

Always used submerged plants in your pond and always start your pond with enough of them. They can be expensive, but do without a water lily for a few weeks and start with at least one bunch of submerged vegetation per square foot of pond surface. Here are some great submerged plants you can use.

Anacharis is my favorite. You can grow it in a pot or just let it float around. It’s family is Hydrocharitaceae, genus Elodea and species Canadensis for those of you who keep track of those things. But if you are ordering it, ask for anacharis and you will get what you want, an oxygenating plant that can grow up to 3-feet in a season and can take over your pond if you don’t watch out. It does best in partial sun and can bake and turn yellow in full sun. Anacharis is a feathery sort of plant that can grow from broken off pieces, so if you want to share, just take some out and hand it to your friend. It is hardy to zone 3a in the US.

Aside from being an oxygenator and food for your fish, anacharis is the first predictor of pond water problems. If the anacharis starts to look sickly and turn to mush when you try to pick it up, you have chemicals getting in your water. Find out where they are coming from and get rid of them. If your anacharis is not a healthy green and growing, your pond is in trouble.

Anacharis does flower, but that is not why you grow it. Every so often tiny white flowers will cover the surface of your pond. They don’t last long and are hardly noticeable, but have a look, they are pretty in their delicateness.

Cabomba is another great pond oxygenator. It’s texture is a bit less feathery and the plant does not grow quite as long as anacharis, but still is invasive. It is part of the family Cabombaceae, genus Cabomba, species Caroliniana. It’s hardy to USDA zone 6a, so will survive most US winters down to -10ºF. Like anacharis, it likes sun to part shade and is a great filter, oxygenator and fish food. It does flower several times a year, usually in late spring, mid summer and early fall. It has an insignificant bloom, usually pale pink to purple to nearly white. It is another plant that is not grown for its bloom, but for its uses in the pond.

Parrot feather is a favorite plant of mine. It is considered a submerged plant and is a great oxygenator, filter and fish food, but shoots it head out of the water about an inch, looking as if it were looking for a place to grow. If it finds a nearby waterfall or damp pond edge, you will see it climbing out of the water and draping itself over the rocks. Parrot feather comes from the family haloragaceae, genus myriophyllum and species aquaticum and like the first two submerged plants is grown either floating or rooted. It is hardy to USDA zone 7a, so is not nearly as hardy as anacharis or cabomba, but what it lacks in hardiness, it makes up for in growth. I have seen parrots feather outgrow a pot and need two strong men to drag it out of the pond. It does produce a bright yellow bloom in mid summer, but is primarily grown for its foliage. It makes a great statement in your pond and does its job of filtering and oxygenating at the same time.

All oxygenating pond plants are invasive and can easily become noxious weeds. Check with your state’s extension service to see if it is legal where you live. If you grow it in your pond, even if it is legal, never throw it in any public waterway because it can make itself at home and end up being a real nuisance. Please be careful how you dispose of your excess submerged pond plants.