Live Plant Specimens >> Flowering plants >> Lemna (Duckweed)

Lemna species grow as simple free-floating thalli on or just beneath the water surface. Most are small, not exceeding 5 mm in length, except Lemna trisulca which is elongated and has a branched structure. Lemna thalli have a single root, which distingushes them from related species Spirodela and Landoltia

The plants grow mainly by vegetative reproduction, two daughter plants bud off from the adult plant. This form of growth allows very rapid colonisation of new water. Duckweeds are flowering plants, and nearly all of them are known to reproduce sexually, flowering and producing seed under appropriate conditions. Certain duckweeds (e.g. L. gibba) are long day plants, while others (e.g. L. minor) are short day plants.

When Lemna invades a waterway, it can be removed mechanically, by the addition of herbivorous fish (e.g. grass carp) or treated with a herbicide.

The rapid growth of duckweeds finds application in bioremediation of polluted waters and as test organisms for environmental studies. It is also being used as an expression system for economical prodution of complex biopharmaceuticals.