Nymphoides cordata belongs to the buckbean family rather than the water lily family, though it occupies similar ecological space, spreading floating leaves across the still surfaces of freshwater ponds, streams, and shallow lakes. The leaves are heart-shaped and often mottled with reddish-purple beneath, and in summer small white flowers appear held just above the foliage. Its natural range runs from eastern Canada south through the Carolinas, with a notable concentration in the Sandhills of North Carolina, where quiet blackwater streams provide the conditions it needs.

In cultivation it is straightforward enough: full to partial sun, submerged in still or slow-moving freshwater, either in a natural pond or a pot sunk into a large tub. What matters more is the choice to grow it at all. It is a far better ecological option than its look-alike invasive cousin Nymphoides peltata, and in some parts of its range it is endangered or imperiled, making garden cultivation a minor act of conservation. It attracts pollinators through the summer months and asks relatively little in return.