How to Care for Pickerelweed

Pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata) is a hardy native aquatic marginal grown for its glossy, heart-shaped leaves and showy spikes of violet-blue flowers held above the water through summer. It is an easy, vigorous plant for pond edges, water gardens, and boggy margins.

Light

Pickerelweed flowers best in full sun, which drives strong, upright growth and abundant bloom spikes. It tolerates partial shade but produces fewer flowers and looser foliage. Give it as much sun as your water feature allows.

Water

This is a true aquatic marginal that wants its roots in shallow standing water. Plant it with the crown just at or below the waterline, typically in up to a few inches of water over the soil surface. It also thrives in permanently saturated bog and pond-edge mud. Never let its rootzone dry out during the growing season.

Soil & Potting

Grow in heavy, rich loam or a dedicated aquatic planting mix - not lightweight potting mixes, which float and cloud the water. Use an aquatic basket or a solid pot without drainage holes, topped with a layer of gravel to keep soil in place and deter fish from disturbing the roots. The soil should be fertile and dense.

Humidity & Temperature

As an aquatic, humidity is a non-issue. Pickerelweed is cold-hardy across a wide range of temperate climates; its top growth dies back in winter and resprouts from the rootstock in spring. In very cold regions, keep the crown below the ice line by lowering the basket into deeper water for winter.

Feeding

Growing in fertile aquatic soil, it needs little feeding. For extra vigor and bloom, push a slow-release aquatic fertilizer tablet into the soil near the roots in spring and again at midseason. Avoid broadcasting loose fertilizer into the water, which fuels algae.

Propagation

Propagate most easily by dividing the creeping rhizomes in spring or early summer; cut the rootstock into sections each with growing points and replant in aquatic baskets. It can also be grown from seed sown onto wet soil, though division is faster and keeps vigorous clumps.

Repotting / Pruning

Divide and repot crowded clumps every two to three years in spring to maintain vigor and flowering. Remove spent flower spikes and yellowing leaves through the season to keep the planting tidy. Cut back dying top growth in late autumn as the plant goes dormant.

Common Problems & Pests

Pickerelweed is largely trouble-free. Aphids sometimes cluster on flower stalks - a strong rinse of water usually clears them. Chewing damage from aquatic insects or waterfowl can occur but rarely harms established clumps. The main issues are cultural: too little water, too much shade, or a lightweight mix floating away. Vigorous clumps can spread, so contain them in baskets if you want to limit expansion.

Seasonal Care Tips

Plant or divide in spring as growth resumes. Through summer keep the rootzone submerged, deadhead spent spikes, and enjoy the long bloom. In autumn cut back fading foliage. In cold climates move baskets to deeper water for winter so the crown stays below freezing ice, then return to the shallows in spring.