# floating marsh pennywort (*Hydrocotyle ranunculoides*) Floating marsh pennywort is a fun plant that loves to float on water! Its round leaves look like little green coins and are often found in wetlands and ponds. - **Category:** [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/plant) - **Rarity:** Common - **Danger:** 1/5 · Very low - **Snaps:** 3 - **Habitat:** Wetlands ![floating marsh pennywort](https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Redirect/file/Hydrocotyle_ranunculoides.jpg&width=800) Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Velela assumed (based on copyright claims)., Public domain · [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hydrocotyle_ranunculoides.jpg) ## Appearance The floating marsh pennywort has bright green, round, scallop-edged leaves that float gracefully on the water's surface. Its tiny, star-shaped flowers are white to greenish-white, emerging from the leaf bases. It's distinct for its small, lily-pad like appearance in dense clusters. ## Taxonomy - **Kingdom:** Plantae - **Phylum:** Tracheophyta - **Class:** Magnoliopsida - **Order:** Apiales - **Family:** Araliaceae - **Genus:** Hydrocotyle ## Interesting facts - In some parts of the world, people eat its fresh, crisp leaves in salads! - It's sometimes used in aquariums to provide shade and shelter for fish! - Its round, coin-shaped leaves give it the "pennywort" part of its name! - This amazing plant can form thick, floating rafts that completely cover ponds! ## Special abilities - **Rapid Spreader:** Floating marsh pennywort can quickly spread, forming dense mats that help it dominate its watery habitat. - **Rooting Power:** It has nodes along its stems that can root into the sediment, anchoring the plant and helping it grow. - **Water Purifier:** This plant can absorb excess nutrients from the water, acting like a natural filter for its environment. ## Measurements & details - **Height:** 2-5 cm - **Spread:** 50-200 cm - **Flower Size:** 0.1-0.3 cm - **Bloom Season:** Late Spring to Early Fall - **Edible:** Yes - **Toxicity:** None - **Lifecycle:** Perennial - **Pollination Method:** Insect ## Ecological connections - **Eats:** Great pond snail (*Lymnaea stagnalis*) — Snails graze on its leaves. - **Shelter:** Mosquitofish (*Gambusia affinis*) — Provides cover for small fish. - **Eaten by:** Mallard (*Anas platyrhynchos*) — Ducks may nibble on new growth. - **Pollinates:** European honey bee (*Apis mellifera*) — Attracts bees to its small flowers. ## Traits - [Flowering](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/flowering): Flowering plants are any plants that produce flowers as part of their reproductive cycle. - [Edible](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/edible): Edible plants are those parts of a plant that are considered safe for human consumption. - [Pollinator Magnet](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/pollinator-magnet): Describes plants that are particularly attractive and beneficial to a wide range of pollinating organisms. - [Rapid Growing](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/rapid-growing): Rapid growing plants exhibit accelerated growth rates, quickly increasing in size and biomass within a short period. - [Wetland](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/wetland): This habitat trait identifies species found in wetlands, which are areas of land saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, including marshes, swamps, and bogs. - [Freshwater](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/freshwater): Freshwater habitats include non-saline aquatic environments such as rivers, lakes, ponds, and wetlands, vital for numerous species. - [Keystone Species](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/keystone-species): Describes a species whose presence and role have a disproportionately large effect on its environment. - [Aquatic](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/aquatic): Aquatic habitats encompass environments where organisms live predominantly in water, including oceans, rivers, lakes, and wetlands. ## Collections - [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/plants) ## Safety **Danger:** 1/5 · Very low Always look but don't touch plants without asking an adult first. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### How to identify floating marsh pennywort? Start with the whole plant, then compare leaf arrangement, leaf edges, stems and any flowers or fruit. Opposite leaves grow in pairs; alternate leaves come one at a time along the stem. These details tell you far more together than a single green leaf does. Plant Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details. ### How tall is floating marsh pennywort? 2-5 cm ### How wide does floating marsh pennywort spread? 50-200 cm ### How big are the flowers on floating marsh pennywort? 0.1-0.3 cm ### When does floating marsh pennywort bloom? Late Spring to Early Fall ### Is floating marsh pennywort edible? Yes ### Is floating marsh pennywort toxic? None ### What is floating marsh pennywort's lifecycle? Perennial ## Where to spot - [Ebenezer](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/ebenezer) — Georgia, US · Neighborhood - [Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/guadalupe-nipomo-dunes) — California, US · Natural Landmark ## More Plants - [white snakeroot](https://www.snappit.app/explore/white-snakeroot) (*Ageratina altissima*) - [tree-of-heaven](https://www.snappit.app/explore/tree-of-heaven) (*Ailanthus altissima*) - [western sword fern](https://www.snappit.app/explore/western-sword-fern) (*Polystichum munitum*) - [common milkweed](https://www.snappit.app/explore/common-milkweed) (*Asclepias syriaca*) --- Source: [Floating Marsh Pennywort: Facts & Places to See — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/floating-marsh-pennywort)