Howard (Polk County)

Florida LAKEWATCH Water Chemistry Summary

Location: Latitude 28°1'22", Longitude 81°44'34"

Period of record: 57 sampling dates; August 24, 1991 to April 6, 1997

Surface area (Shafer et al. 1986): 628 acres / 254 hectacres

Lake Region (Griffith et al. 1997): Winter Haven/Lake Henry Ridges

Geologic formation (Brooks 1981):

The geology is dominated by deeply weathered clayey sand and granular sand of the Hawthorne Formation.

Physiographic region (Brooks 1981):

The water body lies in the Winter Haven Karst division of the Central Lake District.

 

Supplemental, unpublished water chemistry data, University of Florida.

Numbers reported below are the average for 4 months sampled:

pH

9.0

Sulfate (mg/L)

19.7

Total alkalinity (mg/L as CaCO3)

45.2

Calcium (mg/L)

16.7

Conductance (µS/cm @ 25 °C)

179

Magnesium (mg/L)

16.7

Color (Pt-Co units)

25

Sodium (mg/L)

12.2

Chloride (mg/L)

18.4

Potassium (mg/L)

4.4

Silicon (mg/L)

0.5

 

 

Long-term Florida LAKEWATCH Data

Numbers reported below are the minimum, average, and maximum value for the 57 months sampled:

 

Minimum

Average

Maximum

Long-term total phosphorus concentrations (µg/L)

23

34

47

Long-term total nitrogen concentrations (µg/L)

1110

1410

1930

Long-term total chlorophyll concentrations (µg/L)

27.0

44.8

79.7

Long-term Secchi depth (ft)

2.0

2.2

2.5

Florida LAKEWATCH data were not collected in 1999.

Howard (Polk County)

Florida LAKEWATCH Aquatic Plant Summary

Aquatic plant data collected on August 12, 1993

Percent area covered with aquatic vegetation (PAC, %)

12

Percent of lake's volume filled with vegetation (PVI, %)

0

Average emergent plant biomass (kg wet wt/m2)

3.2

Average floating-leaved plant biomass (kg wet wt/m2)

3.5

Average submersed plant biomass (kg wet wt/m2)

6.6

Average width of emergent and floating-leaved zone (ft.)

99

Average lake depth (m)

3

Frequency that plant species occur in 10 evenly spaced transects around the lake.

Common Name

Plant Species

Frequency (%)

tapegrass

Vallisneria americana

100

water primrose

Ludwigia octovalvis

100

cat-tail

Typha spp.

90

willow

Salix spp.

90

knot grass

Paspalum distichum

90

duck-potato

Sagittaria lancifolia

70

water-pennywort

Hydrocotyle umbellata

70

elephant-ear

Colocasia esculenta

70

torpedograss

Panicum repens

60

pickerelweed

Pontederia cordata

50

wax myrtle

Myrica cerifera

50

bald cypress

Taxodium distichum

50

smartweed

Polygonum hydropiperoides

30

floating water-hyacinth

Eichhornia crassipes

20

salt-bush

Baccharis spp.

20

elderberry

Sambucus canadensis

20

.

Cyperus virens

20

melaleuca

Melaleuca quinquenervia

10

giant bulrush

Scirpus californicus

10

maidencane

Panicum hemitomon

10

para grass

Brachiaria mutica

10

rush fuirena

Fuirena scirpoidea

10

red-root flat sedge

Cyperus erythrorhizos

10

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