Practical
Plants

Wolffia arrhiza

Least Duckweed

a perennial evergreen member of the Wolffia genus in the family Lemnaceae.

No photo available

Taxonomy and growth

Family
Lemnaceae
Genus
Wolffia
Life cycle
perennial
Foliage
evergreen
Height
0.01 m
Spread
0.01 m
Flower type
hermaphrodite

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Leaves - cooked. An excellent flavour, they taste somewhat like a sweet cabbage[1]. The leaves are very nutritious, containing about 20% protein, 44% carbohydrate. 5% fat and are rich in vitamins A, B2, B6, C and nicotinic acid[1].

Plant part
Leaves

Environment

Range
Europe to Asia. N. America - Minnesota to Ontario and S.W. Quebec.
Habitat
Floating on quiet waters[3].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
no shade
Water
aquatic
Hardiness
Zone 7+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
neutral, alkaline, very alkaline
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - we have no information on this species but, since it can spread rapidly by division, it really needs no extra help once it is in a pond.

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

A pond plant, floating on the surface of the water, it requires a sunny position in still water that is rich in nitrates and lime[2]. At the limit of its climatic range in Britain and probably best grown in a cold water aquarium[2]. It over-winters in temperate areas by means of resting buds which sink to the bottom of the pond in the late autumn and rise again in the spring[2]. One of the smallest flowering plants in the world, it is cultivated as a vegetable in Burma, Laos and Thailand[1]. It has been recommended for commercial cultivation, especially in tropical areas, because of its rapid multiplication and high nutritional value[1]. Plant densities of over two million plants per square metre have been found[4].

References

  1. Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

  2. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

    ↩1↩2↩3

  3. Livingstone. B. Flora of Canada National Museums of Canada 1978-00-00 ISBN 0-660-00025-3

    ↩

  4. Diggs, Jnr. G.M.; Lipscomb. B. L. & O'Kennon. R. J Illustrated Flora of North Central Texas Botanical Research Institute, Texas. 1999-00-00 http://artemis.austincollege.edu/acad/bio/gdiggs/NCTXpdf.htm

    ↩

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