Euryale ferox stands alone as the only living species in its genus, and it earns that distinction through sheer scale and strangeness. Individual leaves grow 4 to 5 feet across, dark green above with prominent purple veins, and the entire plant spreads to a remarkable 15-foot circle on still water. The spines on stems and leaves are not ornamental — they are genuinely sharp — which gives the plant its common name and a certain fierce authority. Flowers open with an inner row of white petals and an outer ring of deep violet, requiring 3 to 8 inches of water depth for reliable production.

In temperate gardens, it is most practically grown as an annual, started fresh each season, as it is not cold hardy. It prefers a rich medium and still water; moving water suppresses flowering. Beyond the garden, Euryale has a long history as a food plant in China and India: the starchy white seeds are roasted until they pop like popcorn, and in India they are cooked into a porridge called kheer. The fruit, about the size of a small orange, is eaten fresh in China as a cooling food. Few water garden plants carry the same combination of drama, cultural history, and edible yield.