• A biodiverse farm pond accommodates beneficial aquatic plant life.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  On the surface, the typical farm pond may appear to be a placid liquid diversion in a landscape otherwise packed efficiently with soil, grain, livestock, outbuildings and windbreaks. A closer look at the farm pond usually reveals a vibrant ecosystem teeming with wildlife, including plants and organic matter. Too many or the wrong kind of pond plants can choke off sunlight and oxygen, making the pond inhospitable to its inhabitants. Desirable plants can help the ecosystem thrive.
  
  

Floaters

• Some pond plants can float, or have leaves that float, on the water's surface, giving shallow-water shelter to fish and providing shade to other pond wildlife. Flowering pond floaters such as water lilies also shade the water surface, preventing the growth and spread of algae. The flowers attract insects, butterflies and dragonflies, which feed fish and visiting wildlife. Floaters need to be managed regularly to avoid overcrowding your farm pond. Scoop out excess small floaters such as pennywort or watercress with a leaf rake and feed the plants to poultry. Keep water lilies contained by planting them in submerged buckets.
  
  

Bugleweed or Water Horehound

• Like its close relative horehound, the bugleweed or water horehound has long been used in folk remedies as a treatment for coughs. This member of the mint family is both astringent and sedative. According to the "Peterson Field Guide to Medicinal Plants," scientists are exploring this plant's potential to treat hyperthyroidism. An enthusiastic spreader, water horehound can be cultivated for farm ponds if you contain the plant in submerged pots at the pond's edge. This prevents potential disturbance to the ecosystem.
  
  

Margin Plants

• Some farm pond plants, such as marsh marigold, marsh mallow and Siberian iris, grow along the pond edges and borders without venturing too far into the pond itself. These plants attract wildlife with their blooms and foliage and set their roots into the soggy soil at the pond edges to prevent erosion. They also act as a pollution filter system, a buffer to help clean stormwater and runoff before pollutants can move through the watershed. Abundant native plants managed around a farm pond's margins can also slow moving waters after a storm, helping prevent flooding.