The Miracles &
Resiliences of the Common Duckweed

What is duckweed?

The common duckweed is a lemnoidoeae, a type of flowering aquatic plant that can be found in bodies of fresh water such as wetlands, ponds, lakes and the likes.

Often times duckweed can be seen as a nuisance because of it's over flourishing ability to multiply in nutrient rich waters.

The difficulties it presents:

- Lower dissolved oxygen when the rapid growth of duckweed covers the face of the water. It doesn't produce oxygen like algal production does and it block the interaction between water and atmosphere;

- It stores phosphorus and nitrogen and doesn't transform it. When it dies it releases it back into the water

-Its ugly to many amateur gardeners

-It blocks UV penetration and increases fecal coliform levels

So just how fast does duck weed grow?

Duck weed grows invasively and rapidly. Duckweed, at its potential, can double its biomass every 2 days. To imagine this potential we could say that within 45 days it can grow to cover up to an acre.

There are 4 generas in the duck weed family. Lemna, Spirodela, Wolffiela and Wolffia. Can you spot the difference?


1) Lemna Minor
(the common duckweed)
2) Spirodela Polyrhiza
3) Lemna Giba
4) Spirodela Punctata
5) Wolffia arrhiza
6) Lemna trisulca
7) Lemna minuta
8) Lemna perpusilla
9) Wolffia globosa
10) Lemna valdiviana
11) Lemna aequinoctialis
12) Lemna turionifera
13) Wolffia columbiana
14) Lemna yungensis
15) Wolffiella lingulata
16) Wolffia borealis
17) Lemna japonica
18) Spirodela intermedia
19) Wolffia brasiliensis
20) Wolffia cylindracea
21) Lemna disperma
22) Lemna tenera
23) Lemna aoukikusa
24) Wolffiella gladiata

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2

3

4

8

12

11

7

6

10

9

5

What are the potential functions of duckweed?

- In the Netherlands it is being explored as a food option even for human consumption

- Commonlyused for fertilizer, both indstrial agricultural usage on farms or for the common gardener

- Due to it's rapid growth duckweed can be a valuable substitute for high protein feed for livestock.

- Although it releases it after decay, it can absorb excess nutrience in bodie of fresh water. Furthermore, duckweed is known to be used in phytoremediation in industrial wastewaters. However the research is still underway and remains inconclusive. Nonetheless, it does possess properties that enable it to purify water better than algae.

http://www.fao.org/ag/againfo/resources/documents/DW/Dw2.htm

Eat Your Ego

Menu

Appetizer


Entree



Dessert

Duckweed in Art

Olaf Eliasson
The Mediated Motion
2001

Miswa Institution
Waterscape
2015

Duckweed as a protein, tool and in fine dining

In our urban culture there is understandably a grocery store dependency that can be named. Distant visions of red barnyards and content farm animals are encapsulated in the plastic packaging of our meat and vegetable products. We reflect on these untruths as our disavowal stands frigidly with us, in line in the Albert Heijn, because where else can we get our food? -->

An event curated by GZG & R. Pycraaft

Menu & Performance curation by R. Notosudirdjo

Each course is eisther made fully or partially of components of the common duckweed.

Pain Trois Graines infused with Duckweed Dried Duckweed cracker
Served with Duckweed Foie Gras

Duckweed Brulee & Strawberries
or
Tarocake with homemade Duckweed Ice Cream

Duckweed Burger with a black sesame bun

Sweet Potato and Kale fries with Duckweed Salt served in Duck weed paper cone