Water lettuce can reproduce sexually and asexually

Sexual reproduction 

  • Water lettuce produces small flowers that develop into green berries after fertilization.

Asexual reproduction 

  • Vegetative reproduction:
    1. The mother plant produces stolons, or runners, that extend horizontally.
    2. Each stolon grows a new rosette, which is a small plantlet attached to the mother plant.
    3. The daughter plants remain connected to the mother plant by the stolon.
    4. Wind, animals, and boats can break the stolons, allowing the new plants to spread.

How water lettuce spreads

  • Water lettuce can spread by fragmentation, seeds, or daughter plants. 
  • It can spread accidentally when it escapes from ponds and water gardens. 
  • It can spread intentionally when people release extra plants into natural systems. 
  • It can spread when boat trailers or live wells catch rosettes.