Plants That Look Like Lily Pads: 12 Beautiful Options for Your Garden

Lily pads are one of the most iconic aquatic plants Their large, round green leaves floating gracefully on the water’s surface create a serene and idyllic scene. Even if you don’t have a pond or lake, you can recreate the look of lily pads in your garden with imposters that have similar leaves and growth habits Keep reading to learn about 12 fantastic plants that look just like lily pads!

Why Grow Lily Pad Lookalikes?

There are a few reasons you may want lily pad lookalikes rather than the real thing:

• You don’t have a water feature in your garden. Lily pads need to be grown in ponds or lakes, but their doppelgangers can thrive in soil.

• You live in an area where growing real lily pads would be invasive to native ecosystems. Some lily pad varieties can spread aggressively and choke out other aquatic plants.

• You want unique colors and shapes. While most lily pads have green, round leaves, their lookalikes come in more diverse forms.

• You’re looking for lower maintenance. True lily pads require specialized water garden care. The imposters are easier to grow in soil.

12 Terrific Plants That Look Like Lily Pads

1. Pilea peperomioides

Also called the Chinese money plant or pancake plant, this popular houseplant has small, round leaves on long stems. It’s perfect for replicating lily pads indoors. Pilea is easy to care for and propagate.

2. Tropaeolum majus

The common nasturtium is a fast-growing annual with large, rounded leaves and a trailing or climbing growth habit. It comes in bush and vining varieties. Nasturtiums produce edible flowers and leaves with a pleasant, peppery flavor.

3. Nymphoides peltata

Known as yellow floating heart, this aquatic plant has pretty yellow, five-petaled flowers and heart-shaped floating leaves. It makes a great lily pad substitute for ponds and water features. It spreads rapidly, so keep it contained.

4. Hydrocotyle ranunculoides

Floating pennywort is an aquatic plant with tiny round leaves, roughly the size of pennies. It forms a dense floating mat on the water’s surface. Floating pennywort is invasive in some regions, so make sure it’s legal in your area before planting.

5. Marsilea mutica

The four-leaf clover is an aquatic plant with four-parted leaves reminiscent of its lucky namesake. Its thickness makes the leaves float like lily pads. It grows in ponds and aquariums across Asia, Africa, and Australia.

6. Nymphoides aquatica

Also called banana lily, this plant has oval leaves with a notch at the base where they attach to the stem, similar to a banana leaf. Banana lily is native to North America and bears small, white flowers. It spreads readily by runners.

7. Centella asiatica

Gotu kola is a perennial herb used in traditional medicine. Its round leaves look just like miniature lily pads. Gotu kola is easy to grow in moist soil and partial shade. It has small, white or pink flowers.

8. Farfugium japonicum

Leopard plant has large, round leaves mottled with yellow spots that resemble a leopard’s markings. It grows in clumps in moist soil and tolerates shade. Leopard plant bears yellow daisy-like flowers in late summer.

9. Hydrocotyle umbellata

The dollarweed is a creeping perennial plant with round, lily pad-like leaves on upright stems. It grows in lawns, gardens, and disturbed areas. Dollarweed spreads aggressively and is considered a weed in warmer climates.

10. Dichondra

Dichondra is a perennial groundcover that forms a dense mat of small, circular leaves on spreading stems. There are many dichondra species, and some have silver or bronze-colored foliage. It needs consistent moisture and warmth to thrive.

11. Pilea depressa

Also called baby’s tears, this houseplant has tiny round leaves trailing along the soil like a mat of green beads. It works great as an indoor lily pad stand-in and thrives in terrariums or hanging baskets. Keep the soil moist but not waterlogged.

12. Eichhornia crassipes

Finally, you can grow real water hyacinths as lily pad lookalikes. Water hyacinth has thick, waxy round leaves and tall stalks of lavender flowers. However, it’s aggressively invasive, so only grow it in containers, not ponds.

Create Your Own Mini Lily Pad Garden

One fun way to display lily pad lookalikes is to create a mini pond garden container. Choose a wide, shallow basin or bowl. Add pea gravel and aquatic soil. Arrange your lily pad imposters, mini water lilies, marginal plants like iris and rushes, and floating blooms like water lettuce. Add a small recirculating fountain for sound. Your mini pond garden will provide all the charm of lily pads without the need for a real pond.

With so many wonderful plants that mimic lily pads, you can enjoy their iconic floating leaf beauty even without a large water garden. Choose your favorites from this list of 12 terrific lily pad lookalikes to create a serene water garden look in your own backyard.