article: More Shallow Water Marginal Plants

More Shallow Water Marginal Plants

The outskirts of your large water garden, the small water garden that is shallow, and the areas of your landscape that never seem to dry up are great places where shallow water marginal plants can grow. Variety in your gardens will be needed when you have gardening in larger areas that differ from dry hard soil to the wet and swampy – use these plants in areas of your landscape or in the water garden where the water levels are from one inch to five inches deep for great success.

Houttuynia is a shallow water marginal plant that will provide great smells to your water garden. Even the stems and roots of this plant are very distinct in their smells that are given off when cut open. This plant will grow to be any where from six inches high to a little over a foot high. Over the years, your Houttuynia can grow to be close to a foot and a half high but this can take a few years. This plant will grow well in the very shallow areas of your water garden, up to about two inches of water at the most, living in full sun or in the partially shaded areas.

Water Iris is a shallow water marginal plant. Most varieties of this plant are seen in white or in shades of purple. Wild water irises will have three petals with most commercial varieties having six petals on each flower. The water iris will grow best in the full sun areas of your landscape or in the water garden. Water iris plants will grow to be any where from twenty inches tall to about forty inches tall. You can grow the water iris in soil that is moist all the time or you can plant the water iris in areas that are going to be from one to three inches deep with water. You can divide the clumps of the water iris to create new plants in your garden, or you can collect, dry, and replant water iris seeds for new plants.

Skunk cabbage is a shallow water marginal that has a very sophisticated look to it. Skunk cabbage grows with either a white or a yellow flower on the thick stem of this plant. The flowers will appear in the early spring to the mid summer months giving you great shows. Because the leaves are broad on the skunk cabbage, they are great border flowers for the water garden where you don’t want people to have access to the water garden. Skunk cabbage will grow to be about four foot high when they are mature. Seeds will dry over the latter parts of summer, and you can replant these seeds for new skunk cabbage plants. These plants will grow in both the full sun and in the partial shade areas.