Lemna minor - Common Duckweed
These small floating
annual plants have no stems but small root systems that need no soil. The plants collect
in masses and drift on the surface, and on calm still waters duckweed can form a complete
carpet of cover.
The green flowers have no petals; they bloom between May and July.
If only a few fronds of duckweed are allowed to enter a pond, in warm weather this most
rapidly multiplying of aquatic plants can take over vast areas. Ducks keep it under
control: they appear to be very fond of it.
There are several other species of duckweed, varying in size and
shape of fronds. Most have a single root trailing in to water beneath the plant. Rootless
duckweed, Wolffia arrhiza, is an exception; it is also the smallest flowering
plant in Europe, with egg-shaped fronds less than one millimetre across. |
