Duckweed (Lemna minor) is among the smallest of all flowering plants, common duckweed is a free-floating aquatic perennial that forms a floating mat of minute foliage. It overwinters by forming buds (turions) that sink to the bottom, floating back to the surface when the water warms in the spring. duckweed can be used to remove excess nutrients or toxic metals from water bodies (called phytoremediation) because it is an efficient bio-accumulator, is fast-growing and hardy, and is easily removed from the water after use.

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Courtesy of NYBG Plant Information Service