The Water Hyacinth is an aquatic weed plant found in the subtropical regions which float on water. The weed characteristic of the plant has seen it being classified as a dangerous organism especially in places where its control and treatment measure has not been established. This plant mostly affects the lake regions and other humid regions example being swampy areas. Its ability to clone its self-has seen it become even more invasive
The water hyacinth is a subtropics plant. These subtropics regions are known to have a temperature ranging between 28 -25 degrees Celsius. However, they do best in the humid subtropics whose climate can be located on the east of the continent between 25o and 50 o east of the equator. A good example can be the United States south coast, thus the originality of the hyacinth is said to be Brazil. Most Humid Subtropical areas receive about 48 inches of rain each year. The frequent high temperatures vaporize the water this leads to precipitation and humidity. With the basic principle applying there is usually a rise in temperature due to the rise in humidity. . They have hot summers and mildly cold winter and with a rather abnormal pattern of rainfall whereby most rainfall is experienced during the hot seasons and seasonal rainfall experienced during the cold seasons. The decreasing latitude in the humid subtropics regions mainly causes the wet summers and drier winter. Evergreen trees and shrubs and bushes can be said to be the natural vegetation that can be found in the humid. The evergreen trees are nothing but soft. They are not the hardy one's trees like pine and spruce. They are delicate. The long months of warmth and frequent rain are the main course of the evergreen state of the plants. These plants have adapted to the regular climate conditions.
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The main adaptation of the water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) is its thick hallow stem below each leaf. It allows the plant to float on water thus keeping the flowers and leaves above the water. It is common knowledge that the leaves have to be above the water to allow photosynthesis to occur. The broad and thick leaves can raise the plant at least 1meter above the surface of the water. According to (Darlington, 2006), the leaves diameter ranges from are 10–20 cm this plays the role of floating above the water surface. The lengthy soft and, spongy stalks, the purple-black plumy, loosely hanging roots. A steady stem carries 8-15 aesthetic flowers , which are pink and mostly purple petals. However in regions with an average of less than 15% of the salinity than that of the sea then the hyacinth wouldn’t grow.
According to research conducted by (Wolverton, 2007), they reproduce mainly through stolons or through runners. Among its adaptation it is classified among the fastest growing plant, this is mainly because of its capability of producing millions of seeds annually, which some remain viable for over 28years .The general growth of a hyacinth is said to be close to 5meters a day, some common species of the hyacinths can double in six and two weeks , and eventually die. In reference to (Darlington, 2006) the hyacinths another adaptative character is that the leaves have an air-filled cavity containing cells which mainly aids it over the surface of the water. He also goes ahead to suggest that just because the plant has plenty of water around it, the production of xylem is reduced to the minimum. Xylem is generally used to pump water in the plant. The production of little Xylem sees to it that the plant uses the extra energy saved in other functions of the plant. (Wolverton, 2007) also explains that the presence of a wax coating on the surface of the leaf prevents water from stagnating on it thus reduces the ability of the leafs getting wet. Also normally the hyacinths growth is very dense because they all grow super close to each other this can be said to be an adaptative strategy for it ensures that the plants growing below it is fully suppressed thus reduces the competition for nutrients. However, over a long period of time with the existence of the hyacinth at a particular place causes the suppression of the whole aquatic life this makes it a dangerous plant for the waters.
If the organism were to be transplanted to a significantly different environment, then it would be affected depending on where the plant would be planted. If it is transplanted to a less humid environment according to (Darlington, 2006) the growth would be a stunted, the humidity is necessary for it is meant for the humid areas of the country. Otherwise, a transplant of the organism to the dry, sunny land would be a total failure because the roots which are typically adapted to float in water wouldn’t survive buried deep in the soil. The leaf system would be the second part that would help in the destruction of the organism if the plant is planted in the dry, sunny area. The large surface of the plant would encourage faster and more precipitation thus even greater loss of water from the plant. The probability that the plant would dry up in a sunny region is high .According to (Wolverton, 2007) the weak, fragile stalk of the organism may not serve its purpose in a dry, sunny land for it is only adapted to float in the water.
In conclusion, the organism would hardly survive in a new environment because it is mostly characterized by features that are meant to serve in the given humid and watery environment. The exposure to a new environment only presents the plant to totally new challenges that it may not be able to satisfy fully. A good example is when the water Hyacinths are planted in an extremely sunny region. With the big surfaced leaves and weak stems, it can barely survive in a dry land. However it only depends on different organisms, some organisms can adjust to certain situations and fully adapt to the situation.
References
Darlington, C. D., Hair, J. B., & Hurcombe, R. (2006). The history of the garden hyacinths. Heredity , 5 (2).
Wolverton, B. C., & McDonald, R. C. (2007). Water hyacinths and alligator weeds for removal of lead and mercury from polluted waters.
