Pickerel Weed (Pontederia cordata)
Pontederia kor-DAY-tah

Deciduous Perennial Upright, Clump-Forming in the Pontederiaceae Family
A native wetland perennial with long-blooming blue-violet flower spikes held above arrowhead-shaped leaves — equally at home softening a pond edge or helping keep the water clear.

Pontederia cordata, commonly called Pickerelweed, is a native North American aquatic perennial grown as an emergent marginal plant — rooted in mud or shallow water with its glossy, arrowhead-shaped leaves and flower spikes held above the surface. Dense spikes of small, tubular blue-violet flowers bloom from the bottom up over a long season, from roughly June to October, prolonging the show for weeks at a time.

In the wild it grows in the shallow water of marshes, ponds, swamps, and slow-moving streams, native to a wide range stretching from eastern Canada south to Florida and Texas, and found natively in scattered wetland sites across Illinois. Its showy, starchy seeds are edible (traditionally eaten raw, cooked, or ground into flour) and its young leaf stalks can be used as salad greens or cooked like spinach, though raw seeds have occasionally been reported to irritate the mouth.

Beyond its own flowers, Pickerelweed pulls real weight in a water garden: its dense colonies take up excess nutrients and help keep pond water clear, while providing cover for fish and egg-laying sites for dragonflies and damselflies at the water’s edge.

Pros

  • Long bloom season (roughly June to October) of showy blue-violet flower spikes
  • Genuine native wetland plant that helps filter and clarify pond water
  • Attracts butterflies, dragonflies, and damselflies to the water’s edge

Cons

  • Needs standing water or consistently wet mud — not a plant for an ordinary garden bed
  • Rhizomes can spread aggressively into colonies if left unconfined
  • Raw seeds have occasionally been reported to irritate the mouth
Why Like A genuine Illinois native, found in scattered wetland sites across the northeastern, western, and southern parts of the state, growing in the shallow water of marshes, swamps, ponds, and slow-moving streams. Its flowers draw bumblebees and other bees — including two specialist bees that depend on its pollen — along with sulfur and other butterflies. Ducks such as Mallards, Wood Ducks, and Green-winged Teal eat the seeds, and muskrats and deer occasionally browse the foliage; dense colonies also give fish and other aquatic life valuable cover.
Highlights A genuine Illinois-native wetland plant with one of the longer bloom windows of any native aquatic (June to October); doubles as a natural water-clarifying plant for ponds.
 

Plant Data

Mature Size 24 - 48 inches tall. 18 - 24 inches wide.
Growth Rate Fast
Sun Exposure Partial Shade - Full Sun
Moisture Tolerance Wet
Zones 3a - 10b (Usually hardy to -40° F)
Tags Attracts Bees, Attracts Birds, Attracts Butterflies, Attracts Pollinators, Deciduous, Edibles, Full Sun, Good for Butterfly Garden, Good for Rain Garden, Illinois Native, Native to North America, Naturalizing, Partial Shade, Partial Sun, Perennial, Pond, Showy Flowers, Wet, Wet Site Tolerant
Bloom Period June to October
Flower Color Blue-Violet
 

More Info from Experts
Want More photos of this plant? Try Google Image Search!
 


Pricing and Availability History

Click a label to toggle visibility for that size

Past Availability
2025 : 04/03 - 09/06
2024 : 05/01 - 10/05
2023 : 05/18 - 09/24

© North Shore Plant Club 2026. Privacy Policy, Terms & Conditions.

Field-Grown vs. Greenhouse-Grown Plants

Plants which are well-adapted to our local climate are most often field-grown (outside). Field-grown plants are generally cheaper and have the advantage of already somewhat acclimated to our cold winters, but that means they’re not artificially far along in the spring and tend to bloom at the normal time in our area.

Spring annuals and tender perennials are typically grown in Greenhouses so they can be ready and luxurious exactly when customers want them. Some perennials are also “forced” into early bloom in greenhouses. In May, there can be a very big difference between field-grown and greenhouse-grown plants of the same type. The latter typically look good right away (so they’re a great choice where that’s important), but we typically pay a premium for it.


Estimated Recipe Cost

The cost of this recipe's ingredients will vary depending on the season and the sizes and varieties you select.


Benefits of Membership

Want a better way to get great plants and make your yard look awesome? Create your account below and get:

  • The best plants… from the same sources the pros use, but at near wholesale prices
  • More plants in more sizes than anywhere else… whether you’re looking for classics or rarities; annuals, perennials or shrubs; one plant or a whole yardful!
  • "No Contact" delivery or easy pick-up at a site near you without fighting the retail crowds. You choose!

Membership is free, but — since we rely on delivery and local pick-up — you have to live near one of our hubs (or be willing to drive to a site to pick them up). If you live farther away, and would like to help us bring the club to your neighbors, please email helpusgrow@northshoreplantclub.com.

Already a member?
Login
About Ordering From The Plant Club

To secure the best prices for club members and make sure we know the current plants available from each nursery, we take orders only a couple of times a month.

Shoot us an email at help@northshoreplantclub.com, and we'll be happy to talk about plants or let you know when it's time to buy them!


No Pricing or Availability Right Now

We order from a rotating cast of the best nurseries in the Great Lakes region. It looks like we've offered this plant in the past, but the nurseries we're working with this week don't appear to have it in stock at the moment.

Our goal is to bring as many plants together under "one roof" as possible, so we'll try hard to make it available again in the future!