Wetland Plants

CARE SHEET

Wetland plants live submerged in or on the surface of water. They can only grow in water or in soil saturated in water. Ideally, water should be at least 70 degrees.

To start your own water garden, first place your plants in fabric pond pots or no-hole plastic containers. Use heavy clay loam or soil specifically for water plants. Pots should be at least 10” in diameter. Once you have the plant securely in the pot (about half-filled with soil), place slow-release fertilizer tabs or spikes in the soil near the roots. These will last for a full year. Fill the rest of the pot with soil, topping it off with 1-2” of pea gravel. However, keep gravel away from the crown of the tuber.

Lower plant into the water initially just 6” deep. Use an over-turned pot or other base to elevate the pot the plant is in. Once plant has grown stronger, it can be submerged up to 12”.

Water plants need least five hours of direct sunlight. To protect the plant’s roots from being eaten by fish, place it in a floating basket. Occasionally trim the dead leaves off your plant in order to promote new growth.

Milmont carries a variety of plants that can be used as bog plants or in floating island planters. Most of these prefer their crowns be above the water. For plants that prefer the crown under water, see our water garden display. We carry many, but not all, of these plants in our perennial, annual and tropical selections. Ask one of our staff to help you choose the plants that are right for your water garden!

Althenanthera Mint Mentha Arrowhead Sagittaria Marsh Marigold Caltha Autumn fern Dryopteris Papyrus Cyperus Bacopa Bacopa Pennywort Hydrocotyle Bamboo Dulichium Pickerel Rush Pontederia Banana Musa Pitcher Plants Sarracenia Blue Lobelia Lobelia syphilitica Ribbon Grass Phalaris Bulrush Scirpus Rush Grass Juncus Canna Canna Sedge Grass Carex Cardinal Flower Lobelia cardinalis Sweet Flag Grass Acorus Cattail Typha Water Celery Oenanthe Creeping Jenny Lysimachia Water Chestnut Eleocharis tuberosa Elephant Ears Calocasia Water Clover Marsilea Forget-me-not Myosotis Water Iris Iris Versicolor Geum Geum Yellow Flag Iris pseudacorus Golden Monkey Mimulus Hibiscus (perennial) Hibiscus Horsetail Equisetum Joe Pye Weed Eupatorium Louisiana Iris Iris Laevigata