Floating heart (Nymphoides aurantiaca)
Nymphoides aurantiaca, or Floating heart, is a tender aquatic perennial with showy yellow summer blooms perfect for shallow water gardens.
Complete Plant Information
Overview
The Floating heart, scientifically known as Nymphoides aurantiaca, offers a delicate yet charming presence to any aquatic feature. This plant provides the visual appeal of a small water lily, rising from underwater rhizomes to display flat, orbicular dark green leaves floating atop the surface. Gardeners highly value Nymphoides aurantiaca for its fringed, snowflake-like yellow flowers that bloom reliably throughout the summer months.
As a rhizomatous, floating-leaf herbaceous perennial, the Floating heart establishes itself quickly, spreading via viviparous leaves across the water surface. While beautiful, these plants require consistent moisture management, thriving only with wet roots beneath standing water. Successful cultivation of Nymphoides aurantiaca transforms still, shallow water areas into vibrant ecosystems, providing excellent surface coverage.
Native to standing waters in parts of Asia, this species requires warmth, thriving outdoors year-round only in USDA Zones 9 through 11. For gardeners outside these mild regions, treating the Floating heart as an annual or diligently overwintering containers indoors allows appreciation for its unique aesthetic.
Fast Facts
- Plant Family: Menyanthaceae
- Plant Type: Herbaceous perennial
- Native Range: Taiwan, India, Sri Lanka
- Hardiness Zones: USDA Zones 9-11
- Size at Maturity:
- Height: 0.25-0.5 ft
- Spread: 3-4 ft
- Bloom Time: June to August
- Bloom Description: Yellow flowers
- Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
- Water Needs: Wet
- Maintenance Level: Medium
How to Grow
For successful establishment, place Nymphoides aurantiaca in consistently wet conditions, ideally submerged in 1 to 2 feet of standing water. The ideal substrate involves organically rich, sandy bottom loams, or you can keep the plant contained within submerged pots for easier management. Ensure the location receives full sun to partial shade; insufficient light will inhibit the abundant yellow flower production characteristic of the Floating heart.
Maintenance is rated as medium, primarily due to the need to manage its spread and overwintering requirements outside of subtropical zones. Plants naturally spread through viviparous leaves, meaning small plantlets form on the mother leaf, which can then be divided for propagation. This division method is significantly easier than starting Nymphoides aurantiaca from seed.
If you reside outside Zones 9-11, treat the Floating heart as an annual or plan for winter dormancy. Before the first fall frost, submerge containers in up to 1-2 feet of water. Alternatively, if you have access to a greenhouse or an aquarium setup with a grow light, containers can be brought indoors to overwinter the tender aquatic perennial until spring planting.
Landscape Uses
The primary aesthetic value of Nymphoides aurantiaca lies in its function as a floating water lily-like plant for still, shallow water. This makes it perfectly suited for integrating color and texture into water gardens, small ponds, and pool edges where submerged planting is feasible. Its spreading nature means it covers water surfaces effectively, helping to shade the water column and perhaps moderate algae growth.
When designing a small pond, the Floating heart pairs beautifully with deeper-water lilies (Nymphaea) for vertical contrast, or with marginal plants like cattails or pickerelweed placed at the pond edge. Use submerged containers to control the spread of Nymphoides aurantiaca if you are concerned about it dominating a smaller water feature. The vibrant yellow blooms provide a warm contrast against darker foliage.
Standout Features
Flower Qualities
- Showy
Noteworthy Characteristics
Nymphoides aurantiaca, commonly known as yellow-flowered snowflake, is a rhizomatous, floating leaf, tender aquatic perennial which, from a distance, somewhat resembles a small water lily (Nymphaea) in appearance. It is native to areas of standing water in Taiwan, western India and Sri Lanka. Stems from underwater rhizomes rise to the water surface bearing flat, orbicular, dark green leaf blades (each to 2” diameter) which float on the water surface. Fringed, snowflake-like, yellow flowers have 5-lobed calices and 5-lobed corollas. Flowers bloom primarily in summer on short stalks rising slightly above the leaves. Flowers give way to seeded capsules. Limnanthemum aurantiacum is a synonym.Genus name of Nymphoides means resembling Nymphaea (water lily), but these two genuses are in different families.Specific epithet from the Latin aurantiacus means orange-colored.
Tolerances
- Wet Soil
Potential Problems
This aquatic perennial generally experiences no serious insect or disease problems under appropriate growing conditions. Ensuring proper water depth and sunlight exposure are the primary preventative measures against generalized stress. If containers are brought indoors for overwintering, monitor for common houseplant pests if the plant is housed near other tropical specimens.
Frequently Asked Questions
What hardiness zones is Floating heart suitable for?
The Floating heart (Nymphoides aurantiaca) is winter hardy outdoors in USDA Zones 9 through 11.
How large does Nymphoides aurantiaca grow?
This aquatic plant typically reaches a height between 0.25 and 0.5 feet with a spread ranging from 3 to 4 feet as the leaves float across the water surface.
What sun exposure does Floating heart need?
Nymphoides aurantiaca requires full sun to part shade conditions to thrive and produce its characteristic yellow flowers.
When does Floating heart bloom?
The Floating heart typically blooms from June through August, displaying its fringed yellow flowers slightly above the floating foliage.
Conclusion
The Nymphoides aurantiaca, or Floating heart, is an exceptional choice for adding bright, summer-long color to the surface of still, shallow water features. Its distinctive snowflake-like yellow blooms contrast beautifully with its orbicular leaves, providing essential visual interest in water gardens. Before planting, confirm that you can meet its requirement for wet soil and match its needs to your local USDA hardiness zone for year-round enjoyment.
Propagation Tips
The most efficient way to increase your stock of Floating heart is through vegetative division. Since the plant spreads vigorously by producing plantlets directly on its leaves, simply separate these young rosettes when they are established. Wait until the plantlets have developed their own small root systems or established leaves before gently snipping them away from the parent plant.
These divisions can be immediately potted into submerged containers filled with rich, sandy loam, or carefully dropped into the water body as long as the water depth is adequate (1-2 feet). While seeds are an option, dividing the existing plantlets guarantees faster establishment and replicates the proven vigor of the mother plant, an essential step when managing Nymphoides aurantiaca.
Companion Planting
When selecting companions for the Floating heart, always consider plants that thrive in constantly wet or submerged conditions. Marginal aquatics are excellent border complements; consider plants like Water Forget-Me-Nots (Myosotis scorpioides) or Marsh Marigolds (Caltha palustris) situated just at the water’s edge where their roots remain constantly moist, yet they are not fully submerged like the Nymphoides aurantiaca.
For contrast in the water column, combine the medium maintenance Floating heart with low-maintenance, oxygenating submerged plants that do not spread aggressively across the surface. Plants like Vallisneria (eelgrass) provide vertical structure below the surface while allowing the yellow flowers of the Nymphoides aurantiaca to serve as the main focal point on the water’s face.
