Invasive Plant Likely Introduced by Henry Ford's Wife Removed

Yellow floating heart — on the Michigan Invasive Species “Watch List” — has heart-shaped to round leaves and distinctive yellow flowers with five fringed petals. (Michigan DNR photos)

» Get Patch’s daily newsletter and real-time news alerts.

Don’t let that pretty yellow bloom fool you.

There’s nothing innocuous about the yellow floating heart (Nymphoides peltata), which threatened to overtake a pond at the University of Michigan - Dearborn Environmental Study Area in Wayne County. Left alone, it can choke the life out of a pond.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources wildlife staff removed the high-threat aquatic plant as part of the state’s Early Detection and Response program, a joint effort of the DNR and the state departments of Environmental Quality and Agriculture and Rural Development.

“Yellow floating heart is a rooted, aquatic perennial with floating leaves that are heart-shaped to almost round,” Kile Kucher, aquatic invasive species coordinator in the DNR Wildlife Division, said in a statement. “It looks similar to the native white water lily and spatterdock (often called yellow pond lily), but can be identified by the distinctive yellow flower with five fringed petals.”

Kucher said that yellow floating heart is listed as a prohibited species in Michigan, making it illegal to possess, transport or release the plant within the state.

This sighting of yellow floating heart originally was reported through the Midwest Invasive Species Information Network by Rick Simek, natural areas manager of the UM-Dearborn Environmental Interpretive Center.

It’s suspected that the plant has been in this pond for 20 or more years. The property originally was owned by Henry Ford, and some university staff theorize that his wife, Clara, planted this species in the Rose Garden pond herself sometime before 1950.

Kucher said the presence of yellow floating heart is significant because it is the first record of the plant in Michigan.

Yellow floating heart is listed on Michigan’s Invasive Species “Watch List” that includes priority species identified as being an immediate and significant threat to Michigan’s natural resources.

The plant can spread rapidly, forming dense mats on the water’s surface, displacing native species and limiting fishing, boating and swimming. This plant threatens natural systems by changing community structure, excluding light availability to an ecosystem and reducing oxygen levels in the water.

DNR staff collected samples for verification and discussed treatment options with Simek prior to removal efforts, which concluded last week. During the four-day effort, more than 1,000 pounds of this invasive plant were removed. Follow-up surveys of the surrounding area resulted in no additional sightings of the plant.

“It helps that the Rose Garden pond is isolated from other water bodies, reducing the possibility of spread,” said Kucher. “However, this location will be monitored for years to come to ensure the yellow floating heart seedbank is depleted and the plant does not spread to areas outside the Rose Garden pond.

Kucher said the Rose Garden pond cleanup is a “great example of how important it is for citizens to help the state’s invasive species efforts.” He encouraged the public to report invasive species through the Midwest Invasive Species Information Network website or smartphone app, found atwww.misin.msu.edu.