The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-10-11


out of place" seems very applicable to
an aquatic plant. known as the Water
Hyacinth. now in some places filling
the upper st. Johns River, of Florida,
and finding its way into many connect
ed streams, lakes and inlets. 1t is a
very interesting plant, and bears beau
tiful flowers. but, to people who are in
terested in the river traffic. it is re-
garded as the most persistent and hurt
full intruder of its kind in the state. 1t
has also found numerous, congenial
growing places in the waters of some
of the Gulf states and has been es"
pecially troublesome in navigable wat
ers of Louisiana.
The plant belongs to the Pontederia.
or Pondweed family; its botanical
name is Piaropus crassipes. 1t has a
spreading top from one to two feet
high consisting of several stems. IL
liptical leaves about five inches long,
and a much divided and hairy root.
The flower-stalk springs directly from
the base of the root, and produces
spike of delicate lilac flowers, the up
per petal with yellow centre surround
ed by purple, as shaded in the picture.
The plant being strictly aquatic in it's
habits its roots are not grounded in
the bed of the stream. 1t is propa-
gated from seeds, but mainly by run
ners somewhat as the strawberry Is
propa gated, and increases very rapidly.
The plant is kept afioat by its finely
divided and very porous roots, and be-
cause its spongy stem is well inflated
with air. The young plants are espec-
tally provided with floats in the en-
larged and very light stems of their
first leaves. The plant sits gracefully
upon the water, and in growing be-
comes so compact that the great
patches of hyacinths remind one of
green fields conspicuousy decorated
in blooming time with delicate now-
ers
FIRST A HOUSE PLANT.
A few years ago before the plant be
came SO abundant, it was much culti-
waited as a house plant and, on account
of its interesting growth and beautiful
flowers was regarded as a choice and
valuable addition to private conserva-
tories. But to many of our people. as
has been intimated, it is no longer a
thing of beauty. Indeed. it is spreading
so rapidly. and has become such an
impediment to the navigation of the St.
Johns that serious consequences are
feared if means are not speedily taken
to destroy it. 1t is said that five years
ago there was not a hyacinth in the
| river: now there are acres and acres
of them there, the stream in some
places being completely and densely
covered with the plant from bank to
| bank, AMI for miles of its length. Large
| areas of the hyacinths, resembling
great islands, are blown about by the
wind. and carried by currents to new
mOorings, and hence form new centres
| of growth. These agencies add greatly
| to the rapid distribution of the plant.
| and it not only fills the river in many
| places, but is found in connected
| bayous, lakes, and streams.
| Various theories are given as to how
the hyacinths found their way into the
| st. Johns River. One is that a we'll
| known orange grower, living near the
| river, put some of the plants, grown
| from seed obtained in New York, into
| one of his ponds. These grew so well
| and added so much to the beauty Of
| the place that he threw a few plants
| into the river, with the view thereby
| of adding another to its various at
| fractions. Here they made a beautiful
| border of vivid green along a section
of the great sluggish stream, and were
much admired. They soon, however,
| completely covered the pond where
| they had first been introduced and
| spread so rapidly in the river that they
| We're soon entirely beyond control. An
| other and more prOba BILE theory is that
the plant was originally brought from
| South America where it is said to be
| indigenous, and was sold in eastern
| Florida, as a rare greenhouse plant to
| hotel owners and others to adorn their
| grounds. Hence many OF our botani-
| cally interested people may have un-
| Willingly contributed toward the un-
| welcome distribution of the hyacinth
| in our waters. Serious interference by
the plant with the navigation of the
| river began during the summer of
| 1896
MUST BE DESTROYED.
| The importance of destroying this
monopolizing intruder is obvious to
| anyone at all acquainted with the in
| terests associated with this great river
| The st. Johns is the principal avenue
of water transportation in the state
and the blocking of ii in this way is a
serious matter. Passenger and freight
boats are delayed by the hour in max
ing their regular trips up and down
the river. And, in addition to this
boats when plowing their way through
the plants might easily be wrecked
by floating logs hidden among them.
Much rafting has been done on the
st. Johns and its tributaries, logs from
the interior being floated to jackson.
willie and other places. This lumber
business is now seriously crippled, raft.
ing on the larger river being exceeding.
| ly slow through the hyacinths, while
the compact masses of the plants in
many of the smaller streams cut of
this kind of navigation entirely. Be.
sides this Interference with the water
navigation the plant also endanger,
railroading along the river in it's ac.
cumulating masses and accompanies
debris about the bridges, sometime.
seriously endangering these structures
1t is said that the Jacksonville, Tampa
and Key West Railway company ha.
expended $4,000 in protecting it.
bridges from this danger
BUT HOW?
Various means have been suggested
for clearing the river of these plants
Before the great freeze of two year!
ago they had become such a seriou.
menace to navigation that the United
States War Department, after havinl
been called upon repeatedly to take tn,
matter of clearing the river into con
sideration, sent an agent to investi
IVGDC