Water Hyacinth: Distribution, Impact and Control Measures

Abstract

Water hyacint(Eichhornia CRASSIPES)is a free-floating aquatic weed belonging to the family Pontederianceae. Its native habitat is presumably in Amazonia, Brazil, where it is kept in check by its natural enemy complex (insects, mites and pathogens).It spreads vegetatively by means of surface stolons, which together with solitary plants or drifting mats are resadily distributed by water curents, winds boats and rafts. It also produces long-lived seeds, which are responsible for its persistence and spread in new environments. It is one of the fastest-growing plants and is known to double every 5-10 days under optima conditions(25-27).