Bladderwort

NATIVE:  Common bladderwort will usually be found free floating as it has no visible roots.  It has floating stems with leaf-like branches that fork 3-7 times.  Scattered on these branches are bladders that trap young prey.  Young bladders are transparent and green tinted, but they become dark brown to black as they age.  Common bladderwort will also produce yellow flowers that protrude above the water surface.

TYPICAL TREATMENT: Navigate or Reward

Bushy Pondweed (Naiad)

NATIVE:  Bushy pondweed has fine branched stems that emerge from a thin rootstalk.  Leaves are narrow with a broad base where they attach to the stem.  Edges of the leaf will be finely serrated.  Tiny flowers and seeds can develop in the leaf axils.

TYPICAL TREATMENT: Aquathol or Reward

Chara (Muskgrass)

NATIVE:  This unusual type of algae resembles a higher plant without true roots.  Main branches are often encrusted by calcium carbonate, giving the plant a harsh, crusty feel.  Chara typically stays low growing and can be identified by its musky odor.

TYPICAL TREATMENT: Cutrine Plus Granular or Reward

Coontail

NATIVE:  Coontail has long, trailing stems that lack true roots though the plant may be loosely anchored.  Leaves are stiff and arranged in whorls of 5-12.  Each leaf is forked once or twice and the leaf divisions have teeth along the margins that are tipped with a small spine.  Leaves are usually more closely spaced near the ends of branches, creating the raccoon tail appearance.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Navigate or Reward

Curly-leaf Pondweed

EXOTIC:  Curly-leaf has leaves that are oblong and are attached directly to the stem in an alternating pattern.  Margins of the leaves are wavy, finely serrated, and typically resemble lasagna noodles.  Curly-leaf produces small pinecone like seeds called turions that can lay dormant in a water body for 5-7 years making it very hard to eradicate.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Aquathol or Reward

Duckweed

NATIVE: Duckweed has round to oval-shaped leaf bodies called fronds that float individually or in groups on the water surface.  Each frond has three faint nerves, one root and no stems.  Duckweed is usually found in ponds protected from the wind where wave action in minimal.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Sonar or Reward

Elodea (Common Waterweed)

NATIVE:  Elodea has slender stems that emerge from a shallow rootstalk.  The small lance-shaped leaves attach directly to the stem.  Leaves are in whorls of three, or occasionally only two and tend to be more crowded toward the stem tips.  Elodea typically stays low growing to the bottom but can become problematic in shallow waters.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Reward

Eurasian Water Milfoil (EWM)

EXOTIC: EWM has long spaghetti-like stems sometimes 2 or more meters in length.  Leaves are divided like a feather with 14-20 pairs of leaflets.  Leaves are in whorls of 4-5 and can be widely spaced.  EWM can reproduce from fruiting bodies and from fragmentation making it hard to control once established.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  DMA-4, Navigate, or Reward

Flat-stem Pondweed

NATIVE:  The stems are strongly flattened and have an angled appearance.  Stiff linear leaves have a prominent midvein and many fine, parallel veins.  Flat-stem does not have any floating leaves except for its nutlike fruits that are arranged in a cylindrical spike that pokes out of the water. 

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Reward or Aquathol

Forked Duckweed

NATIVE:  Forked Duckweed has a simple, flattened leaf body or frond that is long stalked with three faint nerves and a single root.  Lateral fronds often remain attached to the parent frond, creating a "rowboat and oars" shape.  Flowers are seldom produced and can only be seen with magnification.  Forked Duckweed is often found just under the water surface, seldom making it a nuisance.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Reward

Giant Reed (Phragmites)

EXOTIC: Phragmites have stems 2-4 meters tall that grow out of stout rhizomes.  Some of the stems are topped with spreading clusters of spikelets.  Each spikelet has 3-7 florets and long silky hairs that give a feather duster appearance.  It grows along shorelines and in a variety of wetlands.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Shore-Klear or Touchdown Pro

Horned Pondweed

NATIVE: Horned Pondweed has long, linear, thread-like leaves that are mostly opposite or arranged in whorls on slender branching stems.  Leaf tips gradually taper to a point, and a thin sheath or stipule covers the basal parts of leaves.  Horned pondweed gets its name from it's seeds that occur in groups of 2-4 and are horned shaped. 

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Aquathol or Reward

Hydrilla

EXOTIC:  Hydrilla has a long stem that is branched with oppositely arranged leaves at the bottom.  It has whorls of three to eight leaves with the leaf having an oval shape with toothed margins.  Hydrilla can reproduce from fragmentation making it hard to control once established.  Hydrilla has been rarely found in Wisconsin and should be reported to the DNR if seen.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Reward

Illinois Pondweed

NATIVE: Illinois Pondweed has stout stems that emerge from a thick rhizome.  Most of the submerged leaves are lanced shaped to oval and either attached directly to the stem or have a short stalk.  The leaves have 9-19 veins and often have a sharp needle like tip.  The stipules are free in the axils of the leaves and have two prominent ridges called keels.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Reward or Aquathol

Large-leaf Pondweed

NATIVE: Large-leaf Pondweed has the broadest leaf (3.5-7 cm wide) of any pondweed in our region.  These leaves are arched and slightly folded.  The leaf varies in length and is lined with many veins (25-37).  Large-leaf Pondweed has larger leaves than Illinois Pondweed and has more veins throughout the leaf.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Aquathol or Reward

Northern Water Milfoil

NATIVE: NWM has stems that are sparingly branched and fairly erect in the water.  The leaves are divided like a feather and have 5-12 pairs of thread-like leaflets.  The lower leaflet pairs are longer than the upper ones, creating a Christmas tree shape.  The leaves are arranged in whorls with 4-5 leaves per whorl.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  DMA-4, Navigate, or Reward

Purple Loosestrife

EXOTIC: Purple Loosestrife has angled stems that emerge from a woody rootstalk.  Leaves are lanced shaped, attached directly to the stem, and often have fine hairs on the surface.  Clusters of magenta flowers are produced in leaf axils of a terminal spike.  Each flower has 5-7 narrow petals that are wrinkled with a tissue paper consistency.  It is typically found in moist soils and shallow water.

TYPICAL TREATMENT: Shore-Klear or Touchdown Pro

Sago Pondweed

NATIVE: The stems of Sago Pondweed sprout from slender rhizomes that are peppered with starchy tubers.  The leaves are very thin and resemble pine needles, ending in a sharp point.  Each branch may be forked several times into a spreading, fan-like arrangement.  Flowers and fruits are produced on a slender stalk that may be submersed or floating on the water surface.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Aquathol or Reward

Water Hyacinth

EXOTIC: Water Hyacinth has leaves that are large and broadly lance-like extending from an inflated stalk.  Flowers are blue, violet, or white.  The roots are dark and fibrous.  The height of the plant ranges from a few inches to three feet tall.  Water Hyacinth can reproduce from seeds or by fragmentation making it difficult to control.  If found in a water body it should be reported to the DNR.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Reward or Touchdown Pro

Watermeal

NATIVE: Watermeal is composed of pale green, asymmetrical globes with no roots, stems, or true leaves.  Watermeal has the distinction of being one of the world's smallest flowering plants, however the flowers can only be seen under magnification and are seldom present.  It typically grows in areas that are not disturbed by wind and wave action.

TYPICAL TREATMENT: Sonar or Reward

White Water Lily

NATIVE: White water lily has a cylindrical leaf attached to a round stalk.  The flowers float on the waters surface and are borne on individual flower stalks that rise directly from the rhizome.  They have four greenish sepals and numerous white petals in a circular arrangement. 

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Navigate or Reward

Yellow Floating Heart

EXOTIC:  If Yellow Floating Heart is found in your water body please contact the DNR.  Just recently found in Wisconsin, Yellow Floating Heart can be very hard to eradicate once established.  Identified by its "heart-like" shape, yellow flowers, and wavy purple edges, it is smaller than spatterdock rarely reaching sizes larger than your hand.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  No known effective treatment.  Please contact LPS or local DNR.

Yellow Pond Lily (Spatterdock)

NATIVE:  Spatterdock has a sturdy leaf stalk that has a flattened upper surface with a narrow wing running down each side.  Leaves of spatterdock are heart shaped with rounded lobes that are parallel or overlapping.  Flowers are globular to saucer shaped with 5-6 yellow sepals that often have a deep red patch at the base.

TYPICAL TREATMENT:  Navigate or Reward