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Green arrow arum (Peltandra virginica) |
Walking along the Dike Trail at Great Meadows NWR in June, large, thick arrow-shaped leaves often catch your eye. I am often asked what these are and how to tell the different arrow-leaved plants apart.
Arrow arum (
Peltandra virginica) grows close to shorelines throughout the refuge's marshy impoundments. A member of the Arum family (along with skunk cabbage, Jack-in-the-pulpit, and Duckweeds), it's lush, almost tropical leafy displays are the height of its elegance, since its inconspicuous and petal-less flowers often go unnoticed. The vein pattern is the secret to distinguishing arrow arum leaves from the leaves of several varieties of resident water plants known as arrowheads (
Sagittaria sp.). Arrow arum veins radiate laterally from all along the mid-vein.
Arrowhead species, members of the Water-plantain family (
Alismataceae), have secondary veins that all radiate out from the base of the mid-vein and run parallel to it. When in bloom, their 3-petaled white flowers with yellow centers do attract attention.
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Engelmann's arrowhead (Sagittaria engelmanniana) |
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Sessile-fruited arrowhead (Sagittaria rigida) |
Common arrowhead (
Sagittaria latifolia), which looks most like arrow arum, also grows at Great Meadows, but I don't as yet have a photo.
Pickerelweed, which creates great masses of green leaves across the far end of the lower impoundment, often is mistaken for one of the above plants. A member of the Pickerelweed family (
Pontedariaceae) it too has large, fleshy, pointed leaves with a heart-shaped notch at the base and veining similar to arrowhead leaves. Pickerelweed also has beautiful stalks of purple flowers in June.
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Pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata) |
This is a precious view of the flower with shadow on the leaf. Thank you for a lovely shot.
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