Sessile-Fruited Arrowhead
Sagittaria rigida
Family: Alismataceae
What it is like
Sagittaria rigida is a PERENNIAL growing to 0.8 m (2ft 7in). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 7. It is in flower from July to September. The species is monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and is pollinated by Insects. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in saline soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers wet soil and can grow in water.
Height (m): 0.8
Where it is found
Calcareous or brackish shallow water and shores of ponds, swamps, and rivers, occasionally in deep water from sea level to 1000 metres.
Eastern N. America - Quebec to Minnesota and southwards. Naturalized in Britain in S.W. England.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 3
Root - cooked. Tastes like potatoes.
Root: includes bulbs, corms, tubers, rhizomes etc.
Medicine
Rating: 0
Other
Rating:
How it is grown
A pond or bog garden plant, it requires a moist or wet loamy soil in a sunny position. Prefers shallow, still or slowly flowing water up to 30 - 60cm deep. Plants can succeed in deep water.
Propagating it: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a pot standing in about 5cm of water. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle, and gradually increase the depth of water as the plants grow until it is about 5cm above the top of the pot. Plant out in late spring or early summer of the following year. Division of the tubers in spring or autumn. Easy. Runners potted up at any time in the growing season.
Best place to grow: Pond; Bog Garden;
Habit: Perennial
Hardiness: 6-9
Growth:
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: No shade
Moisture: Wet, water