Water hyacinths are floating plants with beautiful purple and violet flowers that live on top of lakes, rivers, and ponds! They have thick, spongy leaves that are filled with tiny air pockets, almost like little balloons, which help the plant stay afloat on the surface of the water. Each flower has six pretty petals, and one petal has a special yellow spot on it that helps bees and butterflies find it. Water hyacinths originally came from South America, where they grew in the warm rivers of the Amazon rainforest!
Because water hyacinths float, they can travel around with the wind and water currents like tiny green boats! These plants grow so fast that a single plant can make hundreds of new baby plants in just a few months, which means they can cover an entire pond with their pretty purple blooms before you know it. Their roots don’t grow in the dirt like most plants; instead, they dangle down into the water like a purple, feathery curtain, and fish love to hide in them. Even though they are beautiful, they grow so quickly that people sometimes have to remove them so other plants and animals in the pond have enough room and sunlight!