Aquarium and Aquatic Plants Codexery

Lemnoideae

Last updated

Still or slow-moving freshwater bodies and wetlands are the habitats where these plants float either on the surface or slightly below it.[1] A small, organized "thallus" or "frond" that is only a few cells thick makes up the bulk of each plant, which lacks a clear stem or leaves.[2]

Scientific classification

  1. CladeTracheophytes
  2. CladeAngiosperms
  3. CladeMonocots
  4. OrderAlismatales
  5. FamilyAraceae

Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Lemnoideae (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Quick Facts

Smallest flower size
0.3 mm (0.012 in) long (genus Wolffia)
Basal genus genome size
150 MB (Spirodela)
Derived genus genome size
1,500 MB (Wolffia)
Biomass doubling time
within four and a half days
Starch production
five to six times as much starch as corn per unit of area

Facts from the source article.

Biology and range

Extinct free-floating aquatic plants with affinities to the Lemnoideae first appear in the fossil record during the Late Cretaceous.[3] Roots may be entirely absent from a plant, or one or more simple rootlets may be present, varying by species.[2] At just 0.3 mm in length, the flower belonging to the Wolffia genus of duckweeds is the smallest flower known.[4] Duckweeds are usually found in nutrient-rich conditions, including eutrophic environments.[5]

Waterfowl feathers and the skin or fur of other amphibious creatures serve as a means of transport for duckweeds, which stick to these surfaces and are carried to new locations.[6] Genome sizes across duckweed species vary tenfold, from about 150 MB to 1,500 MB, which may correspond to ploidy levels ranging from diploid to octaploid.[7]

What the specialist sources record

The DOE's Joint Genome Institute announced in July 2008 that its Community Sequencing Program would support genomic sequencing of Spirodela polyrhiza as a priority project for 2009.[8] In Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar, duckweed is eaten as food, and it is also grown as a vegetable in Israel.[9] For potential food production on Mars, duckweed was selected as a candidate by NASA's Caves of Mars Project.[10]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Lemnoideae" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Intergeneric and infrafamilial phylogeny of subfamily Monsteroideae (Araceae) revealed by chloroplast <011>trnL-F sequences", American Journal of Botany, 2004, p. 490–498 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Lemnoideae" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Sculthorpe, "The Biology of Aquatic Vascular Plants", Koeltz Scientific Books, 1985 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Lemnoideae" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Fossil Araceae from the upper Cretaceous of Patagonia, Argentina, with implications on the origin of free-floating aquatic aroids", Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 2014, p. 78–86 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Lemnoideae" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Landolt, "Biosystematic investigations in the family of duckweeds (Lemnaceae) Vol. 2: The family of Lemnaceae: a monographic study. – Morphology, karyology, ecology, geographic distribution, nomenclature, descriptions", (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Lemnoideae" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Keddy, "Wetland Ecology: Principles and conservation", Cambridge University Press, 2010, p. 79 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Lemnoideae" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hutchinson, "A Treatise on Limnology", John Wiley & Sons, 1975 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Lemnoideae" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Evolution of Genome Size in Duckweeds (Lemnaceae)", Journal of Botany, 2011, p. 1–9 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. "Duckweed genome sequencing has global implications", E! Science News (Esciencenews.com), 8 July 2008. facts only, no text reused. esciencenews.com
  9. Wikipedia, "Lemnoideae" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Appenroth, "Nutritional value of duckweeds (Lemnaceae) as human food", Food Chemistry, 2017, p. 266–273; Appenroth, "Nutritional value of duckweeds (Lemnaceae) as human food", Food Chemistry, 2017, p. 266–273; de Beukelaar, "Duckweed as human food: The influence of meal context and information on duckweed acceptability of Dutch consumers", Food Quality and Preference, 2019, p. 76–86; "Duckweed for food", European Duckweed Network, 5 May 2025; "Lemna, water lentils, duckweed", Plants for a Future, Plant Database, 2026 (original not read by us en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Lemnoideae" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Flat crops for Mars", The Caves of Mars, 2004 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Lemnoideae (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

Related entries

Araceae, Lemna

More in Aquarium and Aquatic Plants

Lilaeopsis masoniiLindernia intrepidaLobelia dortmannaLudwigia grandifloraLudwigia palustrisLudwigia pilosaLuroniumMarsileaMarsilea quadrifoliaMicranthemum micranthemoidesNupharNuphar advena

Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

Spotted an error? Know more?

Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced

Comments

Loading…
Open in the interactive codex →