FNPS Plant Database

Sagittaria graminea

grassy arrowhead
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

grassy arrowhead

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Sagittaria graminea

Family:

Alismataceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

flower

Size:

1-2 ft

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

Phenology:

winter dormant

Noted For:

Showy Flowers, Interesting Foliage

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Use in water gardens or along the shallow edges of ponds.

Considerations:

Availability:

Propagation:

Light:

Full Sun, Part Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded---------------------------------Extremely Dry

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Aquatic -to- Stays wet

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand, Loam, Organic

Soil pH:

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A,9B,10A,10B

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.

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Vouchered In:

Distribution
Vouchered
Not vouchered
Selected
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Starting…
Map coded by Melissa Fernandez-de Cespedes (Paynes Prairie Chapter)

Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators, Birds

Attracts various pollinators.

Fruit is eaten by birds and other wildlife.

Native Habitats:

Wet prairie, cypress swamps.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

Often in water.
FNPS Plant Print

Citations:

Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. (1999+). Atlas of Florida Plants. ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ). [S. M. Landry and K. N. Campbell (application development), USF Water Institute.] Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

Zhang Y, Zhang L, Zhao X, Huang S, Zhao J. (2013). Effects of Tidal Action on Pollination and Reproductive Allocation in an Estuarine Emergent Wetland
Plant–Sagittaria graminea (Alismataceae). PLoS ONE 8(11): e78956. ( https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0078956 ). Accessed 2026.

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