Bog bean (Menyanthese trifoliata) is a good creeping plant with pretty pink tipped white flowers from April to May. A valuable native plant that forms floating mats providing egg laying sites for adult dragonfly also perching and roosting sites; dragonfly and damselfly nymphs use the stems to climb out of the water ready for their metamorphosis into adults (see picture of damselfly larvae on Bog bean leaves).  The early flowering is good for pollinators when many other plants are yet to get going, and unusually the flowers precede the main foliage growth, which really gets going afterwards and provides some excellent cover for pond life.

Plant in sun or shade although will flower best in full sun. Not suitable for very small ponds as ideally needs space to spread.

Menyanthes Moon Flower; trifoliata with three leaves

Height: 20-30cm

Planting position: Pond marginal shelf up to 0-60cm deep or very wet soil.  Best planted in a shallow square 2 litre aquatic basket or larger: drape roots into basket and fill with soil firming down, allowing the bamboo like stems to float with the growing tip pointing up (at or just above the surface of the water ideally if planting in March/April.  Add gravel to finish.

Form: Bare root

Recommended basket size min./ideal: 2.5 litre shallow square/3.5 litre round