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Hardiness: USDA Zone 4a: to -34.4 °C (-30 °F) USDA Zone 4b: to -31.6 °C (-25 °F) USDA Zone 5a: to -28.8 °C (-20 °F) USDA Zone 5b: to -26.1 °C (-15 °F) USDA Zone 6a: to -23.3 °C (-10 °F) USDA Zone 6b: to -20.5 °C (-5 °F) USDA Zone 7a: to -17.7 °C (0 °F) USDA Zone 7b: to -14.9 °C (5 °F) USDA Zone 8a: to -12.2 °C (10 °F) USDA Zone 8b: to -9.4 °C (15 °F)
Bloom Time: Late Spring/Early Summer Mid Summer Late Summer/Early Fall
Foliage: Herbaceous
Other details: Average Water Needs; Water regularly; do not overwater Requires consistently moist soil; do not let dry out between waterings This plant may be considered a protected species; check before digging or gathering seeds
Soil pH requirements: 6.1 to 6.5 (mildly acidic) 6.6 to 7.5 (neutral)
On Jun 5, 2009, Eleven from Royal Oak, MI (Zone 5b) wrote:
When identifying this native plant on DG, I was warned that it was invasive and difficult to remove. Since the plants had evidently seeded across both sides of my garden, I started removing them. As already noted, they develop an extensive root system. But the plant stems are relatively fragile and break easily... leaving the root system intact and ready to create new plants.
So far, I've had reasonable success in identifying the flowering plants, loosening the soil with a trowel, and digging my hands into the soil to remove the root mass. This is doesn't work for young plants, because they're harder to spot hiding amongst everything else and their root systems are smaller.
This plant is best left to natural woodland areas and out of the garden. As a positive, I'll add that its flowers attract bumble bees. Of course, that's probably how it makes so many seeds!
On Jun 7, 2008, LEO88 from Big Rapids, MI (Zone 4b) wrote:
Hydrophyllum is in my top-5 most HATED plants in my garden...I would love to eradicate this plant entirely from my garden. It self-seeds everywhere...including my gravel driveway, & the aggressive rhizomes will overtake & smother other plants that are nearby. It took me an hour to dig up & slowly remove the waterleaf root was strangling a Peony plant. Certainly not a showy plant, anyway...DON'T GET IT STARTED..!!
On Nov 20, 2006, Malus2006 from Coon Rapids, MN (Zone 4a) wrote:
For a native species, this can be an aggressive weed. IT selfseed at a higher rate and can lie in dormant for a few years. I have to wait until the flowers are done to rip the aboveground section before they go to seed. During the summer, the foliage is ugly as bugs chew the heck out of it. My motto is never plant groundcover that selfseed as they can leap paths and establish themselves near taller plants. The roots are hard to pull out, as it sends down multi "tap" roots that goes deep. And that's in sandy soil! Never include this species among small woodland wildflower gardens unless you uses it in a forest setting that have few plants.
On Jun 14, 2003, Terry from Murfreesboro, TN (Zone 7a) wrote:
The plant's common name "waterleaf" is from the whitish mottling on the foliage; it resembles water stains. Leaves can be cooked and eaten; roots used to make an astringent tea or chewed raw for mouth sores.
Regional...
This plant has been said to grow in the following regions:
Des Plaines, Illinois Waterman, Illinois Hobart, Indiana Fort Dodge, Iowa Big Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids, Michigan Royal Oak, Michigan Isle, Minnesota Minneapolis, Minnesota Boone, North Carolina Dundee, Ohio Ellsworth, Wisconsin
3 members have or want this plant for trade.
