Threeleaf Arrowhead

Native to East Asia, from eastern Siberia through China, Korea, and Japan to Southeast Asia.

• Distributed across eastern Asia from the Amur River basin through China, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and into Southeast Asia
• Grows wild in shallow lakes, ponds, marshes, and rice paddies
• Cultivated in China for at least 1,000 years as a winter vegetable
• In China, most extensively cultivated in the Yangtze River Delta region (Jiangsu, Zhejiang)
• Also traditionally cultivated in Japan, where it is known as "kuwai"
• Has been introduced to parts of Europe and North America where it can become weedy
• The cultivated form produces larger corms than wild populations
• First described by Linnaeus in 1753

Threeleaf Arrowhead is an aquatic perennial with variable leaf shapes and edible underground corms.

Corms:
• Small, ovoid to spherical with a curved, beak-like apex, 3 to 6 cm in diameter
• Skin is brown with distinctive concentric ring markings
• Flesh is white, crisp, and starchy when raw; becomes creamy and sweet when cooked
• Corms are produced at the ends of stolons (runners) in the mud below the water
• Weigh 20 to 80 g each, depending on variety

Leaves:
• Highly variable: emergent leaves are sagittate (arrowhead-shaped) with three pointed lobes
• Submerged leaves are strap-like
• Emergent leaves 10 to 25 cm long on long petioles
• Bright green, smooth

Flowers:
• Small, white, three-petaled flowers in whorls on branching stalks
• Each flower approximately 1.5 to 2 cm wide
• Male flowers have yellow stamens; female flowers have a rounded green center
• Bloom in summer

Plant Size:
• Emergent leaves 20 to 60 cm above water surface
• Spreads via stolons to form colonies

Threeleaf Arrowhead corms provide good nutrition as a starchy winter vegetable.

• Per 100 g cooked corms: approximately 95 to 110 kcal
• Good source of complex carbohydrates (approximately 20 to 24 g per 100 g)
• Moderate dietary fiber (approximately 3 to 4 g per 100 g)
• Low in fat (less than 0.5 g per 100 g)
• Moderate protein (approximately 4 to 5 g per 100 g — higher than potato)
• Good source of potassium (approximately 400 to 500 mg per 100 g)
• Contains phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium
• Provides vitamin C and small amounts of B vitamins
• Contains iron and zinc
• Gluten-free

Threeleaf Arrowhead is an aquatic crop requiring flooded growing conditions.

Planting:
• Propagated from small corms or corm pieces with buds
• Plant in spring in flooded or saturated soil, 5 to 8 cm deep
• Space 25 to 35 cm apart in flooded paddies or containers
• Water depth should be maintained at 5 to 15 cm during growth

Growing:
• Requires full sun and warm temperatures (20 to 30°C)
• Grows in saturated to flooded soil — similar conditions to rice paddies
• Prefers fertile, organic-rich mud or clay soils
• Takes 6 to 8 months from planting to harvest
• Stolons spread through the mud, producing corms at their tips

Harvest:
• Harvest in late autumn to winter when leaves die back, 6 to 8 months after planting
• Drain the water and dig in the mud to find the corms
• Each plant produces multiple corms on its stolons
• Corms can be stored for several months in cool, moist conditions
• In China, often left in the ground and harvested as needed through winter

Threeleaf Arrowhead is a traditional winter vegetable in Chinese and Japanese cuisine.

Culinary Uses:
• In China, sliced and stir-fried with pork, chicken, or vegetables
• Boiled or steamed as a starchy side dish — the chestnut-like flavor is prized
• In Shanghai cuisine, "ci gu dun rou" (arrowhead with braised pork) is a classic winter dish
• Added to soups and hot pots
• Sliced and deep-fried as chips
• In Japan ("kuwai"), thinly sliced and fried as tempura, or boiled and served with soy sauce
• Candied as a traditional Chinese sweet
• A traditional Chinese New Year food symbolizing good fortune

Other Uses:
• Used in traditional Chinese medicine for heat-clearing and detoxifying properties
• The plant provides habitat for aquatic wildlife in managed wetlands
• Ornamental value in water gardens for its attractive arrowhead-shaped leaves
• Used in wastewater treatment systems as a aquatic filter plant