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Broadleaf Arrowhead

Sagittaria latifolia

60
Strong

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
1 foot–4 feet 8 inches
Spread
1 foot–3 feet 8 inches
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Moist to standing water

Space about 2.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 16 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
Late spring
Fruiting season
Spring to summer

Recorded in 97 Virginia counties.

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 186 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

7CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Sagittaria

  • Acronicta oblinitaSmeared Dagger
  • Argyrogramma verrucaGolden Looper
  • Bellura obliquaCattail Border Moth, Cattail Diver
  • Elophila icciusalisPondside Pyralid, Pondside Crambid
  • Elophila obliteralisWaterlily Leafcutter Moth
  • Parapoynx obscuralisObscure Pondweed Moth
  • Bellura anoa
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
11BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Sagittaria

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
11BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Sagittaria

  • Aix sponsaWood Duck
  • Anas platyrhynchosMallard
  • Anser caerulescensSnow Goose
  • Antigone canadensisSandhill Crane
  • Aythya affinisLesser Scaup
  • Aythya collarisRing-necked Duck
  • Aythya valisineriaCanvasback
  • Bucephala clangulaCommon Goldeneye
  • Fulica americanaAmerican Coot
  • Gallinula galeataCommon Gallinule
Show all 11
  • Mareca americanaAmerican Wigeon
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

Beetles 1
  • Diabrotica 12-punctata

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

Flies 10
  • Archytas analis
  • Limnophora narona
  • Lucilia sericata
  • Lucilia sylvarum
  • Orthoneura nitida
  • Rhingia nasica
  • Sarcophaga sinuata
  • Scepsis fulvicollis
  • Spallanzania hesperidarum
  • Trichophora ruficauda

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

Adult butterflies / moths 3
  • Ancyloxypha numitor
  • Limochores taumas
  • Phyciodes tharos

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

Other wasps 4
  • Leionotus arvensis
  • Polistes pallipes
  • Priononyx atrata
  • Pseudoplisus phaleratus

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

No records yet · Ants · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Alismataceae
Hardiness
Zones 5a–10b
Soil pH
Acidic to neutral
Flower color
White
Growth rate
Moderate
Growth habit
Grows in clumps
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
Spring
Fruit ends
Summer

What its natural habitat tells you

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “Late spring” · USDA PLANTS (ranked first; Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differs) · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Flower color · “White” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
  • Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit begins · “Spring” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit ends · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth habit · “Grows in clumps” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Hardiness · “Zones 5a–10b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Height · “1 foot–4 feet 8 inches” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, USDA PLANTS, Minnesota Wildflowers, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
  • Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Virginia DCR Piedmont, Virginia DCR Coastal Plain, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
  • Soil · “Frequent standing water; Moist; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Virginia DCR Piedmont, Virginia DCR Coastal Plain, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
  • Soil pH · “Acidic to neutral” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Spread · “1 foot–3 feet 8 inches” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as

Broad Leaf Arrow Head; Common Arrow Head

Conservation status

Virginia rankS5
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Growing cautions

For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.

Sources