Common Name: Common Spatterdock

General Information

Nuphar advena is a perennial, aquatic, herbaceous plant growing in water up to 60cm deep. The plant produces large heart-shaped leaves reaching 35 - 40cm long and 20 - 25cm wide, floating on the water in a rosette 2.5 metres or more wide. It has a large, spongy and extensively creeping rhizome growing in the mud under the water[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, and medicine. A very ornamental plant, it is often grown in gardens etc[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

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Range

Eastern and southern N. America - Wisconsin to Maine, south to northeast Mexico and Florida; Caribbean - Cuba

Habitat

Ponds, lakes, sluggish streams and rivers, springs, marshes, ditches, canals, sloughs, and tidal waters; at elevations from sea level to 450 metres[, ].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	0.00 m
Pollinators	Flies, Beetles
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Nuphar advena is a plant mainly of the temperate zone, moving into the subtropics and the tropics in Cuba. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 14 - 30°c, but can tolerate 10 - 36°c[]. When dormant, the plant can survive temperatures down to about -20°c, but young growth can be severely damaged at 0°c[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 700 - 1,500mm, but tolerates 500 - 1,700mm[].
A water plant requiring a rich soil and a sunny position. It also succeeds in light shade[]. It is best if grown in still water that is up to 60cm deep but it also tolerates slow moving water[]. Prefers a pH in the range 5 - 7.5, tolerating 4.5 - 8[].
Nuphar advena is extremely variable and intergrades with Nuphar orbiculata , Nuphar ulvacea , and Nuphar sagittifolia in areas where their ranges overlap[].

Edible Uses

Root - raw or cooked[, , , ]. The root can be soaked in water in order to remove a bitter taste[]. After long boiling, it has a taste like sheep's liver[]. The root can also be dried and ground into a powder then used as a thickener in soups, or can be added to cereal flours when making bread, cakes etc[, ].

Seed - raw or cooked. It can be roasted, then ground into a powder and eaten raw, or used to make bread, thicken soups etc[, , , , , ]. The seed can also be toasted like popcorn[].

Medicinal

The fresh root is anodyne, astringent and demulcent[]. The pulverized dried rhizomes have been used to arrest bleeding[]. A tea made from the roots is used in the treatment of dysentery, diarrhoea etc[].
A poultice made from the roots is used in the treatment of swellings, boils, tumours, inflamed skin etc[, ].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - sow as soon as it is ripe in a greenhouse in pots submerged under 25mm of water. Prick out into individual pots as soon as the first true leaf appears and grow them on in water in a greenhouse for at least two years before planting them out in late spring.
The seed is collected by wrapping the developing seed head in a muslin bag to avoid the seed being lost. Harvest it 10 days after it sinks below the soil surface or as soon as it reappears[].
Division in May. Each portion must have at least one eye. Submerge in pots in shallow water until established[].