The family consists of only one genus, Aponogeton, with 56 known species (Christenhusz & Byng 2016 [3]) of aquatic plants, most of which have been included in a molecular phylogeny by Chen et al. (2015).

Additionally, Aponogeton bernierianus, A. capuronii, A. decaryi and A. tenuispicatus have been imported on several occasions but have not achieved any wider distribution because they are difficult to maintain.

The oldest known fossils of the genus are pollen from the Late Cretaceous (Campanian) of Wyoming in North America, approximately 82-84 million years old.

Other fossil Aponogeton pollen is known from Canada and Greenland, dating to the Eocene, approximately 46 and 44-40 million years old respectively, indicating that the genus likely originated in the Northern Hemisphere.

This ability to store water is exploited, for instance, in the annual export of thousands of dormant A. crispus specimens, shipped in large bags in a totally dry state.

The Madagascar lace plants (A. madagascarensis) require special handling as they prefer cooler water – 70 °F (21 °C) as a maximum[citation needed].

Keep the bowl in a dark, cool place, with the sand kept damp, for approximately 2–3 months at a temperature of about 50–64 °F (10–18 °C), until small leaves are seen to sprout from the tuber, when they can be returned to the pond or aquarium.