Broadleaf arrowhead
Sagittaria latifolia

Family: Alismataceae

What it is like

A herb which grows in water and keeps growing from year to year. It grows 1-2 m tall. The leaves are sword shaped and the leaf stalks and leaf blade stick upright. The leaf stalk and blade are 60-100 cm long. The leaves under water are narrow. The flowers are of one sex. There are 3 petals and they are white. They are on a branched flowering stalk. This can be 2 m long.

Where it is found

It grows in warm temperate to tropical places. They grow in the shallow water of ponds. The water can be 25 cm deep. It occurs naturally in mild temperate and tropical wetlands in the Americas. It suits hardiness zones 9-11. It needs fertile soil and accumulated rotting matter in ponds. It needs full sun.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Australia, Canada, Central America, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Europe, French Polynesia, Guatemala, Hawaii, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, North America, Pacific, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Slovenia, South America, USA, Venezuela, West Indies

How it is used for food

The root tubers are boiled and eaten. They can also be fried or roasted. They are also dried and made into flour.

The tubers were an important food for Native Americans.

Edible parts

Tubers, root

How it is grown

Plants can be grown from tubers.

Its other names

Local names

Blue-tongue arrowhead, Chee koo, Duck potato, širokolistna streluša, Wapato, Wappatoo

Synonyms

Sagittaria variabilis Engelm.; and many others