western waterleaf
Hydrophyllum occidentale · Hydrophyllaceae
western waterleaf (Hydrophyllum occidentale) is a perennial herbaceous plant in the Hydrophyllaceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 5 and warmer, down to about -18°F.
At a glance
| Type | forb-herb USDA |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle | perennial USDA |
| Native status | native USDA |
| Mature height | 1.5 ft USDA |
| Light | shade USDA |
| Water need | medium USDA |
| Growth rate | moderate USDA |
| Soil pH | 6.2–7.5 USDA |
| Bloom | May–June USDA |
| Flower color | White USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 5 and warmer USDA |
| Guild layer | ground-cover Derived |
| Nursery availability | No Known Source USDA |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
It tolerates full shade. USDA rates it as having moderate water needs. Its drought tolerance is rated medium. It handles periodically wet ground (USDA rates its anaerobic tolerance medium). It is recorded on soils from pH 6.2 to 7.5 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 5.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 1.5 ft, making it about knee height. It grows at a moderate rate.
Bloom period
USDA records a bloom period of May through June. Flowers are white.
A flowering date, not a pollinator rating.
Foliage, flower and season
Summer foliage is dark green, coarse in texture. Its flowers are conspicuous. Its active growth period is spring and summer. USDA rates its lifespan as short, so plan on replacing or resowing it rather than treating it as permanent structure.
What the site needs to provide
USDA records it across sites receiving 10 to 24 inches of annual precipitation. The low end of that band is genuinely arid, so it has a wide tolerance for dry country. It needs at least 120 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 14 inches. Fertility requirement: low — no feeding needed on ordinary garden soil.
Propagating it
Propagate it from seed and container stock. Seed needs cold stratification — a period of moist chilling — before it will germinate, so sow in autumn or chill it artificially before a spring sowing. Its seed spreads at a slow rate. It does not spread vegetatively, so it will stay where you put it.
Resilience and wildlife
Browsing animals rate it barely palatable — the sourced basis for calling it deer-resistant. Its fire tolerance is rated low. Its growth form is recorded as single crown.
Role in a guild
Ground cover. In a layered planting this is the lowest layer — it shades soil, holds moisture, and suppresses weeds. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.
Tags
Related plants
Others in Hydrophyllum
- ballhead waterleaf Hydrophyllum capitatum
Similar role and hardiness
- Jack in the pulpit Arisaema triphyllum
- Japanese sedge Carex kobomugi
- Mexican rush Juncus mexicanus
- turkey tangle fogfruit Phyla nodiflora
- meadow bistort Polygonum bistorta
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol HYOC, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
- Quoted from USDA PLANTS: active growth period, Bloom, Bloom end, browse palatability, cold stratification, Drought tolerance, fall conspicuous, fertility requirement, fire tolerance, Flower color, flower conspicuous, foliage color, foliage porosity winter, foliage texture, frost free days min, fruit conspicuous, growth form, Growth rate, Hardiness zones, Lifecycle, lifespan, Light, Mature height, Minimum temperature, Native status, Nitrogen fixation, Nursery availability, precipitation max in, precipitation min in, propagation, resprout ability, root depth in, seed spread rate, Soil pH, Soil pH (upper), Tolerance of wet soil, Toxicity, Type, vegetative spread rate, Water need.
- Derived by a fixed rule from those columns: Guild layer.
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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