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What plants can grow in a gray-water environment?

I would like to know the certain kinds of water plants that can grow in a gray-water garden pond. We are trying hard to conserve water at home and gray-watering plants seemed like a good idea.

Public Comments

1. that would be good idea, but i think Gray water will get very slimy and stinky in a pond( all the dead skin cells and such). experiment with it by draining it into a large container to see what happens, to see if im right. it will prob get stagnate really quickly. based on my own experience with gray water storage., boat owner. but with the right plants , they may absorb the organic materials. Some water municipalities, use plants to treat /cleanse water.
2. Greywater is illegal in most municipalities because of the remote possibility that E. Coli from your bathwater will make it into the water supply. This is frankly crazy- a single squirrel turd will spread more fecal bacteria than a filtered greywater system. With greywater it is essential that you use the right kinds of detergent- not just biodegradable, but low in sodium. Sodium is worse for soils in dry lands. Here in North Carolina, we get good rainfall and have low sodium in the soils. It is not uncommon for rural folks to route all greywater out a pipe into the woods. Not a good practice, but doesn't do any obvious harm. Just about any kind of plant will like greywater in the right amount. If you want to get reasonably clear water, you can have a gravel tank for bacteria filtration, followed by a reed bed. The reed bed is a gravel bed with a plastic bottom full of aquatic plants. Rushes, cattails, cannas all work. The roots have a huge diversity of life forms, and the roots themselves absorb nutrients. Oasis design has great info on their website, and their books look excellent. The youtube link is to a dude who has a huge artificial wetland system in his backyard- it purifies his greywater enough that he raises edible tilapia in it.