This free-floating aquatic plant is commonly used as an ornamental in water gardens. 4-6” rosettes of wedge-shaped, overlapping, fluted, velvety green leaves are covered with water-repellant hairs. Plants resemble small open heads of lettuce. New plants are formed at the ends of stolons and radiate outward from the mother plant.
Feathery roots dangle downward from the plants, providing shelter for small fish. As an ornamental, water lettuce provides attractive foliage that inhibits growth of algae and helps keep water clear.
Plants can spread rapidly to form dense mats of foliage and are considered to be noxious weeds in many tropical and sub-tropical areas where they can quickly cover a pond or lake from shore to shore.