|                    American white waterlily
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                |                    Nymphaea odorata  
                      |  
              
                |                    Nymphaeaceae 
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                 Landscape Uses:
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                 Water gardens and along pond and lake edges. | 
               
                Ecological Restoration Notes:  | 
               
              
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                | Availability: | 
               
              
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                 Available at native plant nurseries in central Florida. | 
               
              
                | Description: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Floating aquatic wildflower. | 
               
              
                | Height: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 N/A; floating aquatic. | 
               
              
                | Growth Rate: | 
               
              
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                 Moderate. | 
               
              
                | Range: | 
               
              
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                 Widespread in North America south to Miami-Dade and Collier counties; West Indies and Central America. Not documented on barrier islands in South Florida, but possibly historically present; it grows well at Pan’s Garden in Palm Beach. | 
               
              
                | Habitats: | 
               
              
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                 Sloughs, marshes and swamps. | 
               
              
                | Soils: | 
               
              
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                 Wet, poorly-drained organic soils. | 
               
              
                | Nutritional Requirements: | 
               
              
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                 High; requires rich organic soils for optimal growth. | 
               
              
                | Salt Water Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 Low; does not tolerate flooding by salt or brackish water. | 
               
              
                | Salt Wind Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 Low; salt wind may burn the leaves. | 
               
              
                | Drought Tolerance: | 
               
              
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                 Low; requires moist to wet soils and is intolerant of long periods of drought. | 
               
              
                | Light Requirements: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Full sun to light shade. | 
               
              
                | Flower Color: | 
               
              
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                 White. | 
               
              
                | Flower Characteristics: | 
               
              
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                 Showy.  Fragrant. | 
               
              
                | Flowering Season: | 
               
              
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                 All year. | 
               
              
                | Fruit: | 
               
              
                |   | 
                 Fruit berrylike. | 
               
              
                | Wildlife and Ecology: | 
               
              
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                | Horticultural Notes: | 
               
              
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                 Roots in 1-6 foot deep water. | 
               
              
                | Comments: | 
               
              
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                 See also the Florida Wildflower Foundation's  Flower Friday page.  | 
               
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                    Susan Lerner, cultivated at Pan's Garden, Town of Palm Beach, Florida, USA.
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                    Susan Lerner, cultivated at Pan's Garden, Town of Palm Beach, Florida, USA.
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