Jazmin Locke-Rodriguez, Florida International University – Flowers on Floating Islands Can Help Clean Waterways

On Florida International University Week: The growing issue of harmful algal blooms in waterways may be solved by…growing flowers?

Jazmin Locke-Rodriguez, post-doctoral research associate, explains.

Dr. Jazmin Locke-Rodriguez completed her doctoral research in the Fall of 2024 under the supervision of Dr. Krish Jayachandran, as part of both the Agroecology and NSF CREST Aquatic Chemistry programs. Currently, she is a Postdoctoral Research Associate with the FIU Institute of Environment, where she is conducting biofertilizer trials to evaluate the sustainability of recycling algae biomass as fertilizer. This research aims to provide a sustainable solution for clean water while delivering nutrients to farmers at a lower cost.

In addition to her postdoctoral work, Jazmin is expanding her floating wetland research to test large-scale applications. She founded a startup called Phytoflora, with support from the Seaworthy Collective and the Larta Institute, to implement productive floating wetlands for remediating South Florida waterways. Through her scientific research and practical applications, Jazmin aims to bring regenerative practices that heal our ecosystems while contributing to a circular econom.

Flowers on Floating Islands Can Help Clean Waterways

Rain washes phosphorus, nitrogen and other chemicals from farms, lawns and septic tanks into lakes, rivers, and oceans.

When this happens, harmful algae blooms appear and the oxygen levels that aquatic life need to live drop. This could cause widespread fish kills and impact our coral reefs and seagrass beds.

Natural wetlands have the help of plant life to extract these harmful nutrients from the water. Many of these wetlands, however, have been crowded out by development.

In my research, I explored whether creating floating islands with flowers on them could be the solution to removing some of these harmful pollutants.

We grew flowers on inexpensive mats designed to float on the water’s surface. We were inspired by traditional floating farm practices, such as the chinampas floating farms from the Aztecs in Mexico.

On our mats, the flowers’ roots hang directly in the water. This allows the plants to clean up dissolved nutrients.

We tested different flowers in different tanks that mimicked polluted water. Large African marigolds were most successful at filtering pollutants. They removed 52% more phosphorus and 33% more nitrogen.

The bigger the plants grew, the cleaner the water got.

What’s next? We’re perfecting how to best grow these flowers on the mats. We’re also looking into using native Florida plants, like mangroves, to help clean up saltwater areas. We are working to bring this research to market and scale up floating farms to address nutrient pollution for Florida and beyond.

Read More:
[Miami Herald] – Could floating flower gardens be an answer to Miami’s polluted canals?
Phytoflora by Green Thumb Strategies
[The Conversation] – Flowers grown floating on polluted waterways can help clean up nutrient runoff and turn a profit