Orontium aquaticum (Golden Club)

Native to the eastern United States, this aquatic herbaceous perennial grows in swamps, ponds, and slow-moving streams. Creeping rhizomes anchor it in shallow water, where its leaves may float or stand above the surface. Their waxy coating sheds water, giving the plant another common name, never wet. Small yellow flowers crowd the tips of white stalks in spring. It contains calcium oxalate crystals that can irritate the mouth if eaten. New plants can be raised from seed or by dividing the rhizomes. Photographed in Colombia.