Potamogeton alpinus

Alpine pondweed ( Potamogeton alpinus )

The alpine pondweed ( Potamogeton alpinus ) is a species of the genus within the family of pondweed pondweed plants.

Description

Alpine pondweed grows as annual herbaceous plant. The unbranched stem is up to 2 meters long. The seated dip leaves are 6-20 cm long, on both sides narrowed, thin, translucent, with distinct median strip network. The ever-present floating leaves are thin coriaceous, narrowed into the stalk, with a blunt upper end and often crowded reddish. The yellow -brown fruits are 2.5 to 3 mm long and about 2 mm wide and keeled. The winter buds are coiled.

Occurrence

The alpine pondweed is widespread in North America and Eurasia. In Europe, the southern boundary extends from the Pyrenees to the Alps Corsica. From here, a narrow strip moves south to Montenegro. The eastern main distribution area extends from the Alps north of the 60th parallel to the Urals. An isolated, small part area can be found in Bulgaria.

The alpine pondweed grows best in clear, nutrient-poor waters. It tolerates summer heat bad. It is therefore preferably lives in stagnant or slow-flowing waters that are groundwater fed in the lowlands; here it comes scattered before. In the higher altitudes of the mountains and the Alpine Foreland to find it rare. It comes in the Alps rarely before in lakes. The alpine pondweed has lost a lot of sites lately because of increasing water pollution.

The stems are tough, not easily broken, and the " rootstock " can be difficult to pull out of the ground.