Bunched Arrowhead Sagittaria fasciculata

Bunched arrowhead is a small herbaceous perennial in the Alismataceae (water plantain) family that grows in wetland areas. Though it has "arrowhead" in its common name it is the only member of its genus that has lance-shaped instead of arrowhead leaves. It grows about 15 inches tall and blooms mid-May through July.  This plant produces edible tubers that were heavily collected by the native Americans as a food source. Submerged leaves are long and narrow, round in cross-section. Emerging leaves are flat, broadly ovate, or lanceolate.  They need clean, slow-flowing water on gently sloped landscapes or in deciduous forests.  

This is an endangered plant, if you find one do not disturb it.  Bunched arrowhead is found only in small, isolated pockets in Henderson County North Carolina and Greenville County South Carolina. The seepage habitat in which grows is extremely threatened, and the remaining populations are threatened by residential and industrial development, conversion to pasture, and invasive species.