Sagittaria latifolia
Broad leaf arrowhead
(c) Joshua Mayer, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · licence
Family: Alismataceae · Type: Herb · Native
Sagittaria latifolia (Broad leaf arrowhead) is a native California herb in the Alismataceae family, recognized by basal lobes equal to terminal lobe and long spreading fruit beak.
Broad leaf arrowhead is a California native perennial found in California Floristic Province and Great Basin bioregions in ponds and slow streams at elevations below 1,500 meters. Flowering from July to August, this plant produces white flowers with distinctive sagittate (arrow-shaped) leaves. Growing with ascending to erect stems and producing oblong white or bluish tubers, it forms clusters of emergent aquatic vegetation. Its leaves have characteristic arrow-shaped blades 1.5 to 30 centimeters long, with basal lobes nearly equal to the terminal lobe. The fruit develops with a short spreading beak 1 to 2 millimeters long.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 5 sympatric species; key features are basal lobes equal to terminal lobe and long spreading fruit beak
Habitat and range
Habitat: Ponds, slow streams
Elevation: < 1500 m
California counties: Modoc, Merced, Plumas, Inyo, Shasta, Butte, Riverside, Sonoma, Tuolumne, Yolo, Santa Clara, Contra Costa, Lake, Los Angeles, Mendocino, San Bernardino, El Dorado, Amador, Fresno, Kern, Lassen, Madera, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Sierra, Siskiyou, Stanislaus, Yuba, Nevada, Santa Cruz, Sutter, Colusa, Placer, Solano, Glenn, Del Norte, San Luis Obispo, San Francisco
Outside California: to southern Canada, eastern United States, northern South America
Bloom period
Sagittaria latifolia blooms Jul-Aug.
How to tell it apart
vs Alisma: Sagittaria has separate male and female flowers; alisma flowers have both parts together.; vs Echinodorus: Sagittaria fruit clusters lack the spiky bur appearance of burhead.; vs Ranunculus: Sagittaria has three white petals and aquatic habit; buttercup has five yellow petals.; vs Damasonium: Sagittaria fruits spiral on a dome; damasonium fruits fuse at base in a flat star.; vs Plantago: Sagittaria has three-petaled white flowers; plantain has tiny flowers in brown spikes.
Frequently asked questions
Is Sagittaria latifolia native to California?
Yes. Sagittaria latifolia is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Sagittaria latifolia bloom?
Sagittaria latifolia blooms Jul-Aug.
Where in California does Sagittaria latifolia grow?
Sagittaria latifolia occurs in Modoc, Merced, Plumas, Inyo, Shasta, Butte, Riverside, Sonoma and other counties, at elevations of < 1500 m.
What plant family does Sagittaria latifolia belong to?
Sagittaria latifolia is in the Alismataceae family, genus Sagittaria.
What habitat does Sagittaria latifolia grow in?
Sagittaria latifolia grows in Ponds, slow streams.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.