wetland wildflower

Pickerelweed

Pontederia cordata

Also known as Pickerel Rush

Native to much of the USA and southern Canada

Ontario to Nova Scotia and New England; south to northern Florida; west to Missouri and Oklahoma; north to Minnesota.

Light Full sun to part shade Sun tolerance
Moisture Moist to wet Moisture preference
Zones 3–10 Cold to heat range
Bloom Apr–Sep Flowering time
Height up to 4 ft to 1.2 m
Life cycle Perennial Annual to perennial

Full details, see below

In the garden

A wetland wildflower for full sun to part shade and consistently moist to wet soil. Its white flowers peak in July. At up to 4 ft, it suits rain gardens, pond edges, and damp low spots. Hardy in USDA zones 3–10.

Growing conditions

Light

Full sun Partial shade Full shade

Moisture

Dry Moist Wet

Hardiness zones

Find your zone:

When it blooms

The Pickerelweed's white flowers bloom April to September, peaking in July. This midsummer display draws butterflies and bees.

Pickerelweed blooms white, blue & purpleFoliage

Pollinators & wildlife

Butterflies Monarch

also Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Gulf Fritillary, Red Admiral +66 more
Black Swallowtail, Common Buckeye, Fiery Skipper, Silver-spotted Skipper, Painted Lady, Pipevine Swallowtail, American Lady, Orange Sulphur, Great Spangled Fritillary, Queen, Spicebush Swallowtail, Zabulon Skipper, Cloudless Sulphur, Eastern Black Swallowtail, Peck's Skipper, American Snout, Horace's Duskywing, Clouded Skipper, Dun Skipper, Red-banded Hairstreak, Canadian Tiger Swallowtail, Least Skipper, Long-tailed Skipper, Northern Cloudywing, American Red Admiral, Palamedes Swallowtail, Great Southern White, Little Glassywing, Whirlabout, Common Sootywing, Aphrodite Fritillary, Broad-winged Skipper, Cassius Blue, Florida Zebra Longwing, Twin-spot Skipper, Three-spotted Skipper, Zarucco Duskywing, Dion Skipper, Mulberry Wing, Confused Cloudywing, Aaron's Skipper, Loammi Skipper, Scarce Swallowtail, Rare Skipper, Hylephila phylaeus, Asbolis capucinus, Wallengrenia otho, Two-spotted Skipper, Swarthy Skipper, Byssus Skipper, Euphyes pilatka, Atrytone arogos arogos, Zebra Longwing, Atrytone delaware, Panoquina ocola, Papilio palamedes palamedes, Papilio cresphontes, Abaeis nicippe, Papilio glaucus glaucus, Wallengrenia egeremet, White Peacock, Large Orange Sulphur, Black Dash, Protographium marcellus, Brazilian Skipper, Cynthia cardui
Bees Common Eastern Bumble Bee

also Western Honey Bee, Eastern Carpenter Bee, Brown-belted Bumble Bee +56 more
Two-spotted Bumble Bee, American Bumble Bee, Ligated Furrow Bee, Tricolored Bumble Bee, Bombus fervidus, Two-spotted Longhorn Bee, Black-and-gold Bumble Bee, Half-black Bumble Bee, Orange-legged Furrow Bee, Southern Carpenter Bee, Northern Amber Bumble Bee, Brown-winged Striped Sweat Bee, Yellow-banded Bumble Bee, Carpenter-mimic Leafcutter Bee, Sculptured Resin Bee, Modest Masked Bee, Orange-tipped Wood-digger, Dilemma Orchid Bee, Bufflehead Mason Bee, Bumblebee-like Digger Bee, Deep-blue Sweat Bee, Cherry Mining Bee, Worthy Longhorn, Southeastern Woodborer, Pickerelweed Shortface, Florida Pebble Bee, Thistle Longhorn-Cuckoo, Nelumbo Masked Bee, Osmia conjuncta, water-lily sweat bee, Big-cheeked Angled-Mason, white-winged sweat bee, Asian Honey Bee, Bronze-winged Bamboo-Carpenter, Small Willow Miner Bee, Pseudopanurgus passiflorae, Pseudopanurgus labrosiformis, Drury's Long-horned Bee, Xylocopa virginica virginica, Ceratina dupla floridana, Lacertine Turret-Cuckoo, Pickerelweed Longhorn Bee, Nomia strigata, Ptilothrix bombiformis, Melissodes tepaneca, Amegilla cingulata, Melissodes communis communis, Melissodes bimaculatus bimaculatus, Morning Glory Turret Bee, Peponapis pruinosa, Schwarz's Masked Bee, Oblong Sweat Bee, Woolly Wall Bee, Anthidium florentinum, Abrupt Digger Bee, Frieseomelitta varia
Flower flies Eastern Calligrapher

also Dusky-winged Hover Fly, Exoprosopa fasciata, Dusky-banded Leafwalker +4 more
Bombylius atriceps, Marmalade Hover Fly, Volucella vesiculosa, Eurimyia stipatus
Also visited by
- Moths:
  
  Snowberry Clearwing, Hummingbird Clearwing +3 more
  Nessus Sphinx, Boneset Borer Moth, Plusia precationis
- Beetles: Spotted Pink Lady Beetle, Downy Long-horned Beetle
- Hummingbirds: Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Butterflies that use this plant

Documented host and nectar records. Each links to a planting guide for that butterfly.

Full plant details

Where it grows

Habitat: WetlandThe wild plant community it grows in.
Native range: Much of the USA and southern CanadaUnited States (34): AL, AR, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT, WI, WV. Canada (5): NB, NS, ON, PE, QC. Where it grows wild on its own, by state and province.
Native distribution: Ontario to Nova Scotia and New England; south to northern Florida; west to Missouri and Oklahoma; north to Minnesota.The same native range, usually more exact than the state list, and often noting where it has spread beyond it.

Growing conditions

Light: Full sun to part shadeHow much sun it takes, from full sun to full shade.
Moisture: Moist to wetThe soil dampness it prefers, from dry to wet.
Hardiness zones: USDA 3–10 · Canadian 2–7The cold-to-heat climate range it survives.
Soil: Sandy, Sandy Loam, Medium Loam, Clay, Clay Loam, MudThe soils it grows in naturally.
Soil texture: Light to heavy (sandy to clay)The soil grade it prefers, from sand to clay.
Soil pH: 4.9–8.7The acidity to alkalinity it tolerates (7 is neutral).
Soil quality: MediumHow rich a soil it needs. Many natives prefer lean soil and flop in rich beds.
Water use: HighHow thirsty it is, a rough guide to how often to water.
Salinity tolerance: LowHow well it copes with salty soil, near roads or the coast.
Lime (CaCO₃) tolerance: MediumHow well it copes with chalky, lime-rich soil.

Growth & form

Height: up to 4 ft (to 1.2 m)Typical mature height.
Spread: ~2 ft (0.5 m)How wide one plant gets, a guide to spacing.
Life cycle: PerennialWhether it lives a single season (annual), two (biennial), or returns for years (perennial).
Growth rate: ModerateA relative ranking versus other plants of the same type (USDA), not an absolute rate.
Shape: ErectIts overall silhouette.
Root depth: 10+ in (25+ cm)How far the roots reach, a guide to drought resilience and transplanting.

Flowers, foliage & fruit

Type: WildflowerWhat kind of plant it is.
Bloom: Apr–SepWhen it flowers.
Flower color: White, Blue, PurpleThe bloom color, or colors.
Fruit/Seeds: ripens Jun–OctThe seed or fruit it sets after flowering.
Toxicity: None knownWhether any part is poisonous to people or pets.

Propagation & seed

Cold stratification: Not requiredWhether seed needs a cold, moist spell before it will germinate.
Propagation: Seed, sprigsHow to start new plants.
Seed: ~0.0 million seeds per poundNotes on the seed and how to sow it.
Seed spread rate: RapidHow readily it self-sows. Slow or none means well-behaved, not a spreader.
Seedling vigor: MediumHow strongly young seedlings establish.
Vegetative spread: NoneWhether it creeps outward or stays put in a clump.