21 Water Friendly Plants For Indoor and Outdoor Ponds

Are you looking for some plants that can grow in an indoor or outdoor pond? Finding the right types of floating plants for pond gardens can be a bit of a challenge! Luckily, there are many different options you can choose from. In this article, we take a look at our favorite plants that can thrive in outdoor or indoor ponds!

A close up image of a plant growing on the water. Blooming with a flower that has pink petals and some white on the interior of the flower. The stamen in the middle is yellow.

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There are a number of plants that thrive in water or around the edges of ponds and waterways. Not only do they add color to your pond, but they also serve a critical purpose to the ecology and aquatic life. Water grown plants help to regulate water temperatures, filter the water and reduce algae, and offer shelter and food to animals, insects, and birds while providing a picturesque landscape to your indoor or outdoor garden space.

There are different types of water plants suitable for ponds that help to provide a natural setting to your garden area, including:

  • Submersible water plants: plants that live fully submerged in water.
  • Floating water plants: plants that live on top of the waterways.
  • Marginal: plants that live around the edges of the pond.

Besides promoting ecology to your pond, water friendly plants are pleasing to look at and provide a relaxed setting to sit and enjoy the view of your indoor or outdoor pond. Here is a list of our favorite plants for indoor and outdoor ponds that are sure to add ambiance to any garden!

African Water Fern Plant

Bolbitis heudelotii plants that have central stems and round leaves going along the stem in a fern-like fashion. The plant is growing in a shaded and rocky area.
The African Water Fern Plant prefers to grow in shady places, saturating your soil with oxygen.
Scientific Name: Bolbitis heudelotii
  • Plant Type: Submerged Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Africa
  • Plant Size: 6 to 15 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Shade
  • Plant Zone: 9 to 11

This dark green submersible water plant thrives in shady locations and is perfect for oxygenating your pond. A robust perennial, the African Water Fern is a hardy plant that pops up yearly and offers protection and shelter to fish and aquatic life.

The African Water Fern has strong roots that can attach to floating wood or rocks and is easy to grow indoors or outdoors in fresh waterways and ponds. This plant does not grow well in salt water. The African Water Fern thrives in temperatures between 68 and 80 degrees and is an easy-to-care-for plant to spruce up your pond year after year.

Amazon Frogbit

Close up of Limnobium laevigatum plants with rounded heart-shaped leaves growing on the end of long, submerged stems. The plant sits atop the water and covering the surface.
The roots of this beautiful floating aquatic plant improve pond filtration.
Scientific Name: Limnobium laevigatum
  • Plant Type: Floating Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Central and South America
  • Plant Size: 6 to 20 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Prefer shade
  • Plant Zone: 4 to 10

This beautiful floating aquatic plant boasts heart-shaped greenery and tiny white summer-blooming flowers. They add color to your garden space and offer shade to fish and protection from predators. The roots of this floating plant also add filtration to the pond area.

Amazon Frogbit is a fast-growing plant that adapts well to various water conditions. It is easy to grow in outdoor ponds or indoor aquariums. However, it is also considered invasive in some states. Therefore, before planting this flower in your pond, check the local restrictions to ensure it is safe in your area. You should also keep plants well-trimmed to prevent overgrowth.

Amazon Sword Plant

Several Echinodorus grisebachii plants with blade-shaped, bright green lush leaves. The plant is growing from shallow water in dappled sunlight.
The Amazon Sword Plant is a fast-growing aquatic plant that prefers to grow in sunlight.
Scientific Name: Echinodorus grisebachii
  • Plant Type: Submerged Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Central and South America
  • Plant Size: 12 to 23 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Mixed sun and shade
  • Plant Zone: 4 to 10

These leafy green water plants grow rooted to the bottom of outdoor ponds or interior aquariums and oxygenate the waterways, remove algae, and promote a cleaner pond. The Amazon Sword Plant enjoys the sunlight, but, it can also grow in shaded ponds.

This fast-growing plant prefers temperatures between 72° and 82°F and can easily tolerate hard or soft water. The lime green plant is best-suited for backgrounds because of its thick green leafy foliage and deep roots. It can thrive indoors or out and is a fabulous addition to any pond, aquarium, or garden area.

American Waterweed

Close up of Elodea canadensis plant, with tall central stems supporting long, thin, dark green leaves. The leaves are growing up the entire length of the stems from a gravel surface.
This aquatic plant has dark green foliage and small green flowers.
Scientific Name: Elodea canadensis
  • Plant Type: Submersible Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: North America
  • Plant Size: 0.25 feet
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun
  • Plant Zone: 4 to 10

This popular plant is a favorite among many pond owners and aquarium lovers for its easy maintenance and rapid growth. The American Waterweed thrives in full sun and cold waterways. It is ideal for ponds or aquariums for its beautiful coverage and helps to oxygenate and clean the waters.

This gorgeous plant offers dark green foliage and tiny light green flowers that bloom from mid-July to fall. Buds from the plant drop to the bottom of the water in the fall and produce new plants come spring.

Cattail

Several Typha latifolia plants, with tall thin blades of grass with brown tips and long brown cattails growing atop long stems. They are all growing in a swamp.
This swamp plant provides shelter and shade for wildlife.
Scientific Name: Typha latifolia
  • Plant Type: Submersible Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Northern and Southern Hemispheres
  • Plant Size: 4 to 6 feet
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
  • Plant Zone: 3 to 10

This tall brown marsh plant provides the ideal backdrop for outdoor ponds. These brown, sausage-like cattails are not only pleasant to view. But, they also offer several benefits to wildlife, such as a food source, shelter, protection, and shade.

Cattails also make gorgeous indoor flower arrangements, while their long leaves are perfect for rug-making and woven chair seats. These wholesome perennials come back to your pond every year and make an attractive addition to your outdoor oasis.

Creeping Jenny

Close up of Lysimachia nummularia, a vining plant with bright green rounded leaves growing close to the ground. You can see yellow flowers blooming on some of the vines and water droplets are covering the foliage.
Creeping Jenny is a ground cover plant that produces bright foliage and yellow flowers.
Scientific Name: Lysimachia nummularia
  • Plant Type: Marginal
  • Geographic Origin: Western Asia and Europe
  • Plant Size: 2 to 4 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun
  • Plant Zone: 4 to 9

This easy-to-grow plant makes an ideal flowering ground cover for an outdoor pond. Creeping Jenny offers bright summer foliage that adds vibrancy and color. This perennial will return yearly and thrives best in wet soil.

The robust plant spreads quickly and is considered an invasive species in some areas. So, before purchasing Creeping Jenny for your pond, check if you can plant it in your area. Keep it well-trimmed to prevent it from taking over the rest of any ground cover around your pond.

Duckweed

Overhead shot of Lemnoideae plants with small vibrantly colored green leaves floating on the water's surface, completely covering it.
Duckweed is a tiny aquatic plant that produces small flowers that are edible for ducks.
Scientific Name: Lemnoideae
  • Plant Type: Floating Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: North America
  • Plant Size: 0.3 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Sun
  • Plant Zone: 4 to 10

This floating plant is one of the tiniest aquatic plants that produces small edible flowers ducks love to gobble up. Duckweed is also suitable for indoor aquariums. However, it is crucial to observe this quick-spreading plant because it can sometimes cover the entire pond or aquarium, causing a lack of oxygen to fish and aquatic life below.

Because this plant is so invasive, pruning often is critical. Placing Duckweed in shady areas or under larger plants can also help to slow down its growth. Duckweed can also be pulled and used as livestock feed for chickens, cattle, ducks, and pigs.

Eelgrass

Zostera marina grass with lush, long, thin blades growing out of shallow water marshland and the grass is pushed down close to the water.
Eelgrass has lush and long foliage, which serves as a shelter for ducks and geese.
Scientific Name: Zostera marina
  • Plant Type: Submersible Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: East Asia
  • Plant Size: 4 feet
  • Sun Exposure: Prefer shade
  • Plant Zone: 4 to 10

This lush plant features long leaves perfect for pond backdrops and shelter to waterfowl, such as ducks and geese. The deep-rooted leaves provide shelter for fish and aquatic life.

Eelgrass offers small white flowers that float along the water surface, adding color to your pond or larger indoor aquariums. However, they can become out of control and may take over your pond and aquarium if not trimmed often.

Fanwort

Several Cabomba caroliniana plants growing together, each with a thick central stem supporting long, green feather-like leaves growing around the stems.
Fanwort helps to oxygenate and cleanse the waterways of your pond.
Scientific Name: Cabomba caroliniana
  • Plant Type: Submersible Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Southern United States
  • Plant Size: 3 to 10 feet
  • Sun Exposure: Sun and Partial Shade
  • Plant Zone: 4 to 10

This freshwater submersible plant features large floating green leaves with tiny white flowers to add color to your backyard pond. Fanwort offers several other features to your pond, including oxygenating and purifying waterways and providing shelter for fish and aquatic life.

Fanwort water plants bloom from May until September and come in several variations ranging from pink to purple flowers. Best suited for outdoor ponds because of their long stems, Fanwort makes an excellent addition to your backyard.

Hornwort

Ceratophyllum demersum growing in water with long thick stems and thin long leaves growing from the stems in a sandy wet area.
Hornwort is an easy-to-grow aquatic plant that oxygenates the water and reduces algae growth in the pond.
Scientific Name: Ceratophyllum demersum
  • Plant Type: Submersible Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Central and South America
  • Plant Size: 120 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Sun with partial shade
  • Plant Zone: 3 to 10

This submersible plant is ideal for indoor and outdoor ponds and features thin green leaves. Hornwort also oxygenates the water and reduces algae.

They are easy to grow and spread quickly, so they need regular trimming to prevent overgrowth within your pond or aquarium. This lime green aquatic plant makes a great addition to your waterways.

Lotus

Beautiful blooming Nelumbo nucifera flower with soft white petals with vivid pink tips and a yellow center. The plant is growing at the top of a long stem and round leaves floating and covering the pond with more round leaves and flowers in the blurred background.
The Lotus is an exotic aquatic plant that produces gorgeous large green leaves and fragrant flowers.
Scientific Name: Nelumbo nucifera
  • Plant Type: Floating water plant
  • Geographic Origin: India and Asia
  • Plant Size: 6 to 20 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun
  • Plant Zone: 5 to 10

This exotic water-friendly flowering plant features large floating green leaves and brightly-colored pink blossoms. The fragrant flowers and leaves are attached to long stems and float in water. Lotus plants make a beautiful addition to your outdoor pond and offer ornamental views with leaves up to 2 feet wide.

A perennial plant, the Lotus thrives with sunlight and needs dirt at the bottom to establish its roots. Because of its large size, this exotic plant is best suited for outdoor use and offers breathtaking water views.

Mosaic Flower

Ludwigia sedoides plant close up, with diamond-shaped green leaves with red stems floating on top of the pond with a single yellow flower that has four petals and a yellow center.
The Mosaic Flower has green diamond-shaped foliage and yellow cupped flowers.
Scientific Name: Ludwigia sedoides
  • Plant Type: Floating Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Central and South America
  • Plant Size: 2 to 3 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
  • Plant Zone: 6 to 11

This emergent plant features attractive red buds with green diamond-shaped foliage. The eye-catching flowers float along the surface of the water. At night, the flowers close and re-open in the daylight to bright cup-shaped yellow flowers.

Mosaic flowers are suitable for outdoor ponds and indoor aquariums and offer color to your waterways. Just be sure to trim them back so they don’t entirely cover the surface of the water, leaving creatures and other plants below without access to sunlight.

Mosquito Fern

Several Azolla plants covering the surface of the pond, each with scale-like green foliage growing in limbs or branches.
The Mosquito Fern helps to reduce the growth of algae and prevents mosquitoes from laying eggs in the waterways.
Scientific Name: Azolla
  • Plant Type: Floating water plant
  • Geographic Origin: Western USA and Canada
  • Plant Size: 2 to 3 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
  • Plant Zone: 7 to 11

This small free-floating water fern is a popular choice of aquatic plant for outdoor ponds or indoor aquariums. It features tiny two-lobed bright-green leaves with a hint of purple when the sun shines on them.

Planting Mosquito Ferns in your pond offers many benefits, including reducing algae growth, discouraging mosquitoes from laying eggs on the waterways, and helping to clean the water. This fast-growing fern needs frequent trimming to prevent covering the entire water surface and affecting the survival of aquatic life below.

Rain Lily

Close up of a Zephyranthes flower with six bright pink petals and a white throat with pale green stamen that has yellow tips growing among reeds in a moist environment.
Rain Lilies bloom with gorgeous flowers ranging from white, pink, and lavender.
Scientific Name: Zephyranthes
  • Plant Type: Marginal Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: South America
  • Plant Size: 6 to 12 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun
  • Plant Zone: 7 to 11

Rain lilies are the perfect plant to add to the edge of your outdoor pond, offering a variety of colors to your backyard from white, pink apricot, and lavender blooms. These gorgeous flowers bloom from spring to the end of summer, especially after rainfall when they open widely to display their colors.

Depending on the zone, some gardeners leave their rain lilies in the ground over winter. Meanwhile, others dig up the bulbs and replant them in early spring.

Rough Horsetail

Close up of Equisetum hyemale, a plant that grows in hollow green stalks with gray and black stripes at the knots or knuckles with more reeds growing in the blurred background.
Rough Horsetail is an easy-to-grow plant that grows well in moist conditions.
Scientific Name: Equisetum hyemale
  • Plant Type: Submersible Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: North America and Europe
  • Plant Size: 2 to 5 feet
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun and partial shade
  • Plant Zone: 4 to 9

This submersible plant grows well in moist conditions and thrives in ponds and standing outdoor waterways. It is ideal for swampy areas where other plants do not do well and offers a vertical backdrop to your outdoor garden space.

To help control overgrowth, plant Horsetail in a submersible container to reduce its spread. Despite the name, this plant is also toxic to livestock, including cattle and horses.

Umbrella Palm

Close up of several Cyperus alternifolius plants, each with several Long, thin, green leaves growing from the top of a thick, sturdy stem.
This plant grows and expands quickly, making the perfect backdrop.
Scientific Name: Cyperus alternifolius
  • Plant Type: Submersible Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Taiwan, Australia, Hainan
  • Plant Size: 2 to 6 feet
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
  • Plant Zone: 1 to 8

Another popular plant for your outdoor pond is the Umbrella Palm. This impressive plant makes an ideal backdrop that grows up to 6 feet high and offers breathtaking displays of tropical-looking foliage.

Because this hardy plant can grow and spread quickly, plant it in a submersible container to decrease its spread. The Umbrella Palm makes a charming addition to any backyard pond or garden.

Water Forget-Me-Not

Several Myosotis scorpioides flowers, each has five tiny blue petals with five more even smaller white petals hugging the yellow center. The flowers are growing on small stems with the ground, blade-like foliage, and a rock in the blurred background.
Water Forget-Me-Not blooms with magnificent fragrant blue or pink flowers that attract pollinators.
Scientific Name: Myosotis scorpioides
  • Plant Type: Marginal Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: United Kingdom
  • Plant Size: 6 to 12 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
  • Plant Zone: 5 to 9

These pretty flowers come in shades of blue or pink and grow well in rocky water and borders around outdoor ponds. They add vibrant shades of color to the edges of your pond and can also be grown indoors in sunny locations.

These fragrant flowers attract butterflies and hummingbirds with their sweet nectar to outdoor ponds. Blooming from mid-spring to early fall, the Water Forget-Me-Not is an excellent addition to your waterways.

Water Hyacinth

Single Eichhornia crassipes bloom, with several purple flowers, each with five petals one of which has a yellow center, growing at the top of a thick stem, among thick, waxy foliage. The plant sits atop the surface of a pond.
The Water Hyacinth is a fast-growing aquatic plant that produces purple flowers with bluish-green foliage.
Scientific Name: Eichhornia crassipes
  • Plant Type: Floating Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Central and South America
  • Plant Size: 6 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Partial sun
  • Plant Zone: 8 to 11

These plants are easy-to-grow in still water, such as in outdoor ponds and aquariums. For outdoor ponds, plant Water Hyacinths in early spring by scattering them on the water surface after the last sign of frost.

These fast-spreading plants thrive in sunny conditions offering purple blooms with blueish-green summer foliage. Water Hyacinth makes an attractive addition to your indoor gardens in sunny locations. Trim them often to prevent rapid spreading.

Water Iris

Three bunches of Iris pseudacorus with long, thin foliage that was recently trimmed and several yellow flowers, all growing along the edge of a pond.
The Water Iris is good for decorating the edges of a pond.
Scientific Name: Iris pseudacorus
  • Plant Type: Submersible Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Europe
  • Plant Size: 1.5 to 2 feet
  • Sun Exposure: Full sun or partial shade
  • Plant Zone: 5 to 9

There are a number of types of iris that can grow in wet soil. However, there is only one true Water Iris that performs very well in swamps, bogs, or at the edges of ponds.

Featuring long pointed stems and purple or yellow blooms, the Water Iris makes a brilliant addition to outdoor ponds. This showy plant adds color to the edges of your pond and thrives partly submerged in the water. However, the Water Iris is toxic to pets.

Water Lily

Single Nymphaeacaea flower, with several pink petals that open up to a yellow center, floating on the surface of a pond with several round green leaves growing on top of red stems floating alongside the flower.
The Water Lily is a flowering aquatic plant that not only beautifies your pond but also prevents algae growth.
Scientific Name: Nymphaeacaea
  • Plant Type: Floating Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Central and South America
  • Plant Size: 2 inches to 1 foot
  • Sun Exposure: Sun or partial shade
  • Plant Zone: 3 to 11

This beautiful summer-blooming plant features attractive white, purple, or pink floating flowers with yellow centers and large, round green leaves. The long, submerged stems and parts of the plant provide habitats for many aquatic creatures.

Water Lilies are not only attractive and spruce up your outdoor pond. They also aid in the ecosystem of your waterways by providing shade and shelter to marine life, preventing algae, and keeping the pond cleaner.

Water Poppy

Close up of a single Hydrocleys nymphoides flower, with four yellow petals that open up to black and yellow stamen in the center of the flower, a small bug is resting on the edge of one of the yellow petals, with round floating leaves blurred in the background.
The Water Poppy produces yellow floating flowers that help purify the water.
Scientific Name: Hydrocleys nymphoides
  • Plant Type: Floating Water Plant
  • Geographic Origin: Central and South America
  • Plant Size: 6 to 16 inches
  • Sun Exposure: Full or partial shade
  • Plant Zone: 9 to 11

The perfect addition to your fishpond, the Water Poppy features floating blooms in shades of yellow, helps to clean the water, and provides oxygen to aquatic life. Water Poppies also provide shade for fish below and are an ideal choice of plant for your outdoor ponds or indoor aquariums.

This plant produces thick, shiny leaves that grow to be 2 to 4 inches long. It is a fast-growing plant that needs to be watched so that it doesn’t block sunlight from reaching the bottom of the pond.

Final Thoughts

With so many unique and colorful water-friendly plants, we hope you have fun sprucing up your waterways with our list of our favorite plants for indoor and outdoor ponds. Each once has its own unique beauty and is a crowned jewel that can be enjoyed in any pond or water feature.

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