Sagittaria latifolia
Willd.
Alismataceae
The Temperate Database is in the process of being updated, with new records being added and old ones being checked and brought up to date where necessary. This record has not yet been checked and updated.
Common Name: Duck Potato
General Information
Sagittaria latifolia is a perennial plant that can grow up to 1.20 metres tall.
It is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and medicine
Known Hazards
None known
Botanical References
60- Title
- Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Hitchcock. C. L.
- Publisher
- University of Washington Press
- Year
- 1955
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.
,
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
,
274- Title
- Illustrated Flora of North Central Texas
- Publication
-
- Author
- Diggs, Jnr. G.M.; Lipscomb. B. L. & O'Kennon. R. J
- Website
- http://artemis.austincollege.edu/acad/bio/gdiggs/NCTXpdf.htm
- Publisher
- Botanical Research Institute, Texas.
- Year
- 1999
- ISBN
- 1-889878-01-4
- Description
- An excellent flora, which is also available on-line.
Range
N. America - all areas except the far north. Naturalized in various parts of Europe[
50- Title
- Flora Europaea
- Publication
-
- Author
- ?
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Year
- 1964
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for Europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.
].
Habitat
Ditches, ponds, lakes and swampy areas in most parts of N. America[
60- Title
- Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Hitchcock. C. L.
- Publisher
- University of Washington Press
- Year
- 1955
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.
].
Properties
Edibility Rating | |
Medicinal Rating | |
Habit | Perennial |
Height | 1.20 m |
Pollinators | Insects |
Cultivation Status | Wild |
Cultivation Details
A pond or bog garden plant, it requires a moist or wet loamy soil in a sunny position[
1- Title
- RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956
- Publication
-
- Author
- F. Chittendon.
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Year
- 1951
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).
]. Prefers shallow, still or slowly flowing water up to 12cm deep[
1- Title
- RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956
- Publication
-
- Author
- F. Chittendon.
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Year
- 1951
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).
,
56- Title
- Complete Guide to Water Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Muhlberg. H.
- Publisher
- E. P. Publishing Ltd.
- Year
- 1982
- ISBN
- 0-7158-0789-7
- Description
- Deals with a wide range of plants for temperate areas (and indoor aquaria) with quite a lot of information on cultivation techniques.
].
Hardy to at least -20°c[
187- Title
- Perennials. Volumes 1 and 2.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Phillips. R. & Rix. M.
- Publisher
- Pan Books
- Year
- 1991
- ISBN
- 0-330-30936-9
- Description
- Photographs of over 3,000 species and cultivars of ornamental plants together with brief cultivation notes, details of habitat etc.
].
A polymorphic species[
92- Title
- Early Uses of Californian Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Balls. E. K.
- Publisher
- University of California Press
- Year
- 1975
- ISBN
- 0-520-00072-2
- Description
- A nice readable book.
].
Edible Uses
Root - raw or cooked[
62- Title
- A Field Guide to N. American Edible Wild Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Elias. T. and Dykeman. P.
- Publisher
- Van Nostrand Reinhold
- Year
- 1982
- ISBN
- 0442222009
- Description
- Very readable.
,
105- Title
- Tanaka's Cyclopedia of Edible Plants of the World.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Tanaka. T. & Nakao S.
- Publisher
- Keigaku Publishing; Tokyo
- Year
- 1976
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- The most comprehensive list of edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
]. Excellent when roasted, the texture is somewhat like potatoes with a taste like sweet chestnuts[
85- Title
- Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Harrington. H. D.
- Publisher
- University of New Mexico Press
- Year
- 1967
- ISBN
- 0-8623-0343-9
- Description
- A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.
,
92- Title
- Early Uses of Californian Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Balls. E. K.
- Publisher
- University of California Press
- Year
- 1975
- ISBN
- 0-520-00072-2
- Description
- A nice readable book.
,
94- Title
- Common Edible and Useful Plants of the West.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Sweet. M.
- Publisher
- Naturegraph Co.
- Year
- 1962
- ISBN
- 0-911010-54-8
- Description
- Useful wild plants in Western N. America. A pocket guide.
,
159- Title
- Wild Food Plants of Indiana.
- Publication
-
- Author
- McPherson. A. and S.
- Publisher
- Indiana University Press
- Year
- 1977
- ISBN
- 0-253-28925-4
- Description
- A nice pocket guide to this region of America.
,
256- Title
- Food Plants of Coastal First Peoples
- Publication
-
- Author
- Turner. N. J.
- Publisher
- UBC Press. Vancouver.
- Year
- 1995
- ISBN
- 0-7748-0533-1
- Description
- Excellent little handbook about the native food plants of Western Canada. Good descriptions of the plants and their uses with colour photos of most plants.
]. The tubers can be eaten raw but they are rather bitter (especially the skin)[
85- Title
- Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Harrington. H. D.
- Publisher
- University of New Mexico Press
- Year
- 1967
- ISBN
- 0-8623-0343-9
- Description
- A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.
,
102- Title
- Native Harvests.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Kavasch. B.
- Publisher
- Vintage Books
- Year
- 1979
- ISBN
- 0-394-72811-4
- Description
- Another guide to the wild foods of America.
,
159- Title
- Wild Food Plants of Indiana.
- Publication
-
- Author
- McPherson. A. and S.
- Publisher
- Indiana University Press
- Year
- 1977
- ISBN
- 0-253-28925-4
- Description
- A nice pocket guide to this region of America.
]. It is best to remove this skin after the tubers have been cooked[
183- Title
- Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Facciola. S.
- Publisher
- Kampong Publications
- Year
- 1990
- ISBN
- 0-9628087-0-9
- Description
- Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
]. The tubers can also be dried and ground into a powder, this powder can be used as a gruel or mixed with cereal flours and used to make bread[
85- Title
- Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Harrington. H. D.
- Publisher
- University of New Mexico Press
- Year
- 1967
- ISBN
- 0-8623-0343-9
- Description
- A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.
,
94- Title
- Common Edible and Useful Plants of the West.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Sweet. M.
- Publisher
- Naturegraph Co.
- Year
- 1962
- ISBN
- 0-911010-54-8
- Description
- Useful wild plants in Western N. America. A pocket guide.
]. The N. American Indians would slice the boiled roots into thin sections and then string them on ropes to dry in much the same way as apples[
183- Title
- Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Facciola. S.
- Publisher
- Kampong Publications
- Year
- 1990
- ISBN
- 0-9628087-0-9
- Description
- Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
].The egg-shaped tubers are 4 - 5cm long and are borne on the ends of slender roots, often 30cm deep in the soil and some distance from the parent plant[
85- Title
- Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Harrington. H. D.
- Publisher
- University of New Mexico Press
- Year
- 1967
- ISBN
- 0-8623-0343-9
- Description
- A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.
,
92- Title
- Early Uses of Californian Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Balls. E. K.
- Publisher
- University of California Press
- Year
- 1975
- ISBN
- 0-520-00072-2
- Description
- A nice readable book.
,
94- Title
- Common Edible and Useful Plants of the West.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Sweet. M.
- Publisher
- Naturegraph Co.
- Year
- 1962
- ISBN
- 0-911010-54-8
- Description
- Useful wild plants in Western N. America. A pocket guide.
]. The tubers are best harvested in the late summer as the leaves die down[
92- Title
- Early Uses of Californian Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Balls. E. K.
- Publisher
- University of California Press
- Year
- 1975
- ISBN
- 0-520-00072-2
- Description
- A nice readable book.
,
95- Title
- Edible and Useful Wild Plants of the United States and Canada.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Saunders. C. F.
- Publisher
- Dover Publications
- Year
- 1976
- ISBN
- 0-486-23310-3
- Description
- Useful wild plants of America. A pocket guide.
]. They cannot be harvested by pulling out the plant since the tops break off easily, leaving the tubers in the ground[
213- Title
- Earth Medicine, Earth Food.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Weiner. M. A.
- Publisher
- Ballantine Books
- Year
- 1980
- ISBN
- 0-449-90589-6
- Description
- A nice book to read though it is difficult to look up individual plants since the book is divided into separate sections dealing with the different medicinal uses plus a section on edible plants. Common names are used instead of botanical.
].
Medicinal
A poultice of the leaves has been used to stop milk production[
222- Title
- A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Foster. S. & Duke. J. A.
- Publisher
- Houghton Mifflin Co.
- Year
- 1990
- ISBN
- 0-395-46722-5
- Description
- A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.
].
A tea made from the roots is used as a digestive[
222- Title
- A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Foster. S. & Duke. J. A.
- Publisher
- Houghton Mifflin Co.
- Year
- 1990
- ISBN
- 0-395-46722-5
- Description
- A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.
,
257- Title
- Native American Ethnobotany
- Publication
-
- Author
- Moerman. D.
- Publisher
- Timber Press. Oregon.
- Year
- 1998
- ISBN
- 0-88192-453-9
- Description
- Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.
]. A poultice of the roots is used in the treatment of wounds and sores[
222- Title
- A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Foster. S. & Duke. J. A.
- Publisher
- Houghton Mifflin Co.
- Year
- 1990
- ISBN
- 0-395-46722-5
- Description
- A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.
,
257- Title
- Native American Ethnobotany
- Publication
-
- Author
- Moerman. D.
- Publisher
- Timber Press. Oregon.
- Year
- 1998
- ISBN
- 0-88192-453-9
- Description
- Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.
].
Other Uses
None known
Propagation
Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a pot standing in about 5cm of water. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle, and gradually increase the depth of water as the plants grow until it is about 5cm above the top of the pot. Plant out in late spring or early summer of the following year.
Division of the tubers in spring or autumn. Easy.
Runners potted up at any time in the growing season.
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