Arrowhead vera flowers
Arrowhead is a plant belonging to the Alismataceae family. The family consists of 28 species occurring all over the world. All the species are characterized by the shape of their leaves that resemble arrow points. The leaves are usually pale green, green, or yellowish-green on the top and pale green or yellowish on the lower surface. Both sides of the leaves are glabrous, The plant is a perennial herb growing naturally in ponds, streams, and shallow lakes. The plant creates white flowers with three roundish petals which next turn into achene fruits. The root system consists of long spreading stolons which sometimes produce starchy tubers as well as coarse fibrous roots.
Species native to North America were often the source of food for Native Americans and were known to early settlers as the duck potatoes. Nowadays the plant is used in aquaculture, to improve the condition of ponds and to improve feeding areas for birds. Native to North America and Europe Sagittaria sagitifolia is commonly cultivated in China as a source of food. The plant was also introduced to other continents as an ornamental plant, used to decorate agricultural waterways, streams, and ponds.
The plant grows well in the full or partial sun in shallow deep conditions. It prefers fertile soil containing organic matter. Arrowhead naturally grows in slow-moving or stagnant shallow water. It usually can be spotted in places such as swamps, bogs, seeps, marshes, wet woodlands, on the edge of ponds, slow-moving streams, canals, and deep ditches. It is quite resistant to pollution but prefers higher quality wetlands. Due to its intensive spreading the plant was marked as an invasive species.
Thanks to its flowers, Arrowhead attracts a vast variety of small insects such as bumblebees, honeybees, wasps, various species of butterflies, and many kinds of beetles. The insects cross-pollinate the flowers or feed on leaves, stems, roots, and other parts of the plant. Arrowhead’s fruit is also a source of food for various vertebrate animals such as for example ducks or muskrats.
Global arrowhead production
The arrowhead is a small, sharp triangular stone that was used as a weapon and tool during the Stone Age. It was first used in Africa and later spread to Europe and Asia. Arrowheads were made of flint, obsidian, or chert, and were attached to shafts with animal sinew or plant fiber. They were used to hunt animals and birds, and as a weapon in warfare.
During the Stone Age, arrowheads were made using a variety of techniques. The most common method was chipping, where small pieces of stone were removed from a larger piece to create the desired shape. Other methods included grinding, sawing, and punching. Arrowheads were used throughout the world until the invention of firearms. Today, they are prized by collectors and can be worth a great deal of money.