Native Plants
![](../_images/smarty_plants.gif)
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
![](../_images/mr_smarty_plants_logo_web_200w.jpg)
rate this answer
![](../_images/star_00.gif)
Tuesday - June 13, 2006
From: Garland, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Water Gardens
Title: Native plants for water garden in Garland, TX
Answered by: Joe Marcus
QUESTION:
Hello, I was interested in creating a water garden-koi pond in the landscaping and was interested to know what plants you would suggest for this usage that would be perennial? Furthermore I was interested in using bog & marginals, submerged, and floating plants that would not have invasive tendencies but still be visually interesting and possibly flower. Thank you for your time.ANSWER:
The Wildflower Center has a 2-page PDF article on Water Gardening that you can download from the Native Plant Library. While we will recommend some native plant species that should work well for you, their relative invasiveness will depend both on the pond they're in and on what your perception of invasive is. There is no doubt, though, that some plants will be more aggressive and require more maintenance than others.Some bog/marginals that should work well for you are Hydrolea ovata, Pontederia ovata, Saururus cernuus, Iris brevicaulis and Hymenocallis liriosme.
An excellent submerged plant is Vallisneria americana.
Useful and interesting floating plants are Nymphaea odorata, Utricularia radiata and Marsilea macropoda.
More Water Gardens Questions
Plants to replace Phragmites australis (Common reed) in Cedar Ridge Preserve
February 25, 2015 - Dear Mr. Smarty Plants,
I live in the DFW area and volunteer at a preserve (Cedar Ridge). We are constantly battling the common reed, Phragmites australis, around the pond. I am wondering what shou...
view the full question and answer
Flowers for a pond area that will not hold water
January 07, 2009 - We are in area code 77437 in the Coastal Plains of Texas. We have a 1 acre pond that will not hold water (dug to deep into the clay)and we would like to fill this pond with flowers (maybe wildflowers...
view the full question and answer
Plants for NY wetland yard
April 30, 2011 - We have standing water in our yard for the entire spring and sometimes summer if it's a rainy one. We dug a ditch and found that our yard has a natural spring, which explains a lot. I need to know ...
view the full question and answer
Understory plants for Lake Forest IL
June 21, 2009 - We have a large mostly hardwood lot in Lake County. It floods when it rains hard and remains damp most of the year due to the amount of shade and clay based top soil. Besides the hardwood trees and ...
view the full question and answer
Source for Saltmarsh cordgrass from Houston
April 16, 2013 - I work for a consulting firm and we are looking to do more of our wetland creation/restoration. Do you know where one can purchased Spartina alterniflora?
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |