Eastern purple bladderwort
Utricularia purpurea
Lentibulariaceae


Landscape Uses:

Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations.

Ecological Restoration Notes:

Availability:
Grown by enthusiasts.
Description:
Submerged or floating aquatic wildflower.
Height:
N/A; submerged or floating aquatic.
Growth Rate:
Moderate.
Range:
Eastern and central North America south to Miami-Dade County and the Monroe County mainland; West Indies, Mexico and Central America.
Habitats:
Swamps and marshes.
Soils:
Wet, poorly-drained to permanantly innundated calcareous or organic soils.
Nutritional Requirements:
High; requires rich organic soils for optimal growth.
Salt Water Tolerance:
Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water.
Salt Wind Tolerance:
Low; salt wind may burn the leaves.
Drought Tolerance:
Low; requires moist to wet soils and is intolerant of long periods of drought.
Light Requirements:
Full sun.
Flower Color:
Purple.
Flower Characteristics:
Semi-showy.
Flowering Season:
All year.
Fruit:
Inconspicuous capsule.
Wildlife and Ecology:
Horticultural Notes:
Comments:
See also the Florida Wildflower Foundation's Flower Friday page and a 2018 post on the Treasure Coast Natives blog on Eastern purple bladderwort's carnivorous traps.


Roger L. Hammer
Shirley Denton
Shirley Denton