Azolla caroliniana

Family
Azollaceae

Common Names
Carolina Mosquito Fern, Water Velvet

Origin
This plant is widespread over North America right down to Central America.

Planting Area
This is a floating plant, never attempt to plant it in the substrate.

Lighting Requirements
Bright lighting will speed up the growth but it can tolerate medium lighting with no ill effect.

Propagation
This plant will propagate itself by sending out runners which will have a young plant on the end. These are often two leaf juvenile plants and as they grow in size and develop more leaves they will detach themselves from the parent plant.

Difficulty
Easy if given the correct requirements.

Short Description
This plant is cultivated as a fertiliser as it has an ability to store large amounts of nitrogen from the water; this makes it very popular in the aquariums as the addition of these will reduce the nitrate levels in the tank. It is also used for fish food and poultry food production.