Alisma plantago-aquatica is a hairless plant that grows in shallow water, consists of a fibrous root, several basal long stemmed leaves 6-12 inches long (15–30 centimetres), and a triangular stem up to 3 or 4 feet tall (1 metre). It has branched inflorescence bearing numerous small flowers, 1/2 inch across (1 cm), with three round or slightly jagged, white or pale purple petals.
The flowers open in the afternoon. There are three blunt green sepals and six stamens per flower. The carpels often exist as a flat single whorl. It flowers from June until August and the fruits appear as a ring of seeds inside each flower.
Range:
The species is widespread across most of Europe and Asia from Portugal and Morocco to Japan, Kamchatka and Vietnam.
It is also regarded as native in Austrailia, in northern and central Africa as far south as Tanzania. It is reportedly naturalized in southern Africa, New Zealand, Alaska, British Columbia, Washington state and Connecticut.
