Pokémon Pokopia is a creative sandbox adventure where building the right habitats is the key to meeting new Pokémon. Duckweed is one of the most important environmental elements in the game, as it grows on water and unlocks habitats that certain Pokémon refuse to appear without. If you are trying to complete the Pokopia Pokédex, getting Duckweed sorted early will save you a lot of time. Here is everything you need to know about making it, placing it, and building the Uplifting Duckweed Habitat.
What Is Duckweed in Pokémon Pokopia?
Duckweed is a floating plant tile in Pokémon Pokopia that grows exclusively on water surfaces. Unlike most other foliage in the game, you cannot find it lying around to pick up or craft through a standard recipe. Instead, you have to generate it yourself using a powered-up version of the Leafage ability.
Beyond decoration, Duckweed serves a functional purpose. It is a required component for building specific habitats, most notably the Uplifting Duckweed Habitat, which is where Lotad and Ludicolo appear. Without it, you cannot attract these Pokémon or fully complete your Pokédex.
How to Make Duckweed in Pokémon Pokopia
Making Duckweed requires two things: access to the Leafage ability and having it powered up by eating a Salad. Here is the full process from start to finish.
Step 1 — Unlock Cooking at Rocky Ridges
Leafage cannot produce Duckweed in its default state. You first need to power it up by eating a Salad, which means unlocking the cooking mechanic.
To do this:
- Progress to Rocky Ridges, the second main region of the game. You unlock access by reaching Trainer Rank “Great” during the Yawn Up a Storm Important Request in Withered Wasteland.
- Enter Rocky Ridges through the Trainer Gate to the west of the Wasteland.
- Advance through the main request line until you rescue Chef Dente.
- Complete the request involving Dartrix, who teaches you the Cutting Board recipe after you give them a Perch.
- Craft a Cutting Board and place it next to a stove.
Step 2 — Cook and Eat a Salad
With cooking now unlocked, you need to prepare a Salad. A Basic Salad only requires two Leaves and works perfectly for powering up Leafage. Any Salad with the “salad” suffix in its name will do the job.
Once you eat it:
- Your PP recovers fully.
- The Leafage PP bar turns yellow, confirming the ability is now powered up.
- You retain enhanced Leafage until you fully deplete that yellow bar.
Note: Scorbunny will eat the first Simple Salad you cook, so make a few extra before heading out.
Step 3 — Create Duckweed on Water
With powered-up Leafage active, head to any body of water and follow these steps:
- Approach a water surface in any region.
- Select the Leafage ability and use it on a water tile to create a single patch of Duckweed.
- Alternatively, hold down the ability button (ZR) to instantly cover a larger area with Duckweed in a cross-shaped pattern.
Important: Holding ZR will also spawn grass on any dirt patches around the edges of the water, so be mindful of your surroundings when using the area creation method.
Alternative Method — 3D Printer at the Pokémon Centre
There is a second way to place Duckweed, though it becomes less practical once you have powered-up Leafage available.
- Find naturally occurring Duckweed at the bottom of a waterfall in Rocky Ridge.
- Switch to Object Mode by pressing Y while in Photo Mode, and take a picture of the Duckweed.
- Visit a repaired Pokémon Centre in any region and use the 3D Printer to print a tile of Duckweed.
However, this method costs 1 Rare Pokemetal per tile, which is a steep price. On top of that, the Duckweed still cannot be picked up once placed. This option is best avoided unless you are very early in the game and need a quick workaround.
Can You Move Duckweed After Placing It?
No. Once Duckweed is placed in Pokémon Pokopia, you cannot pick it up or reposition it. The two interactions available are:
| Ability | What It Does to Duckweed |
| Rototiller | Does not pick it up, unlike most other foliage |
| Cut | Destroys it and leaves behind one collectible Leaf |
Because of this, the best approach when building habitats is to create more Duckweed than you think you need, and then use Cut to remove patches in areas where you do not want it. Fortunately, most Duckweed-based habitats do not require highly precise placement, so trimming the excess is usually enough to get the setup working.
How to Build the Uplifting Duckweed Habitat
Once you have enough Duckweed placed, you can trigger the Uplifting Duckweed Habitat (Habitat No. 109). The requirements are straightforward:
| Requirement | Amount Needed |
| Duckweed | 4 tiles |
| Water | 2 tiles |
Arrange four Duckweed tiles in close proximity to at least two water tiles to trigger the habitat. You can also walk on top of the Duckweed or jump into the water and float alongside it once it is set up.
Pokémon That Spawn in the Uplifting Duckweed Habitat
Here are the Pokémon you can find once the Uplifting Duckweed Habitat is active:
| Pokémon | Rarity | Time of Day | Weather |
| Lotad | Common | Any | Any (Sunny, Cloudy, Rainy) |
| Ludicolo | Rare | Any | Any (Sunny, Cloudy, Rainy) |
Both Pokémon spawn regardless of the time of day or weather conditions, which makes building this habitat one of the more straightforward Pokédex tasks in the game.
Lotad carries the Water specialty, which lets it use a full water basin to spray water on nearby fields and plants. Ludicolo shares the Water specialty and also has the Hype specialty, meaning it will start dancing when it hears music, which improves the overall mood of your island.
Duckweed Pokémon Pokopia Summary
| Question | Answer |
| How do you make Duckweed? | Use powered-up Leafage on water tiles |
| How do you power up Leafage? | Eat any type of Salad |
| Where do you unlock cooking? | Rocky Ridges, after rescuing Chef Dente |
| Can you move Duckweed? | No, it cannot be picked up once placed |
| What does Cut do to Duckweed? | Destroys it and drops one Leaf |
| What habitat does Duckweed create? | Uplifting Duckweed Habitat (No. 109) |
| Which Pokémon spawn there? | Lotad (Common) and Ludicolo (Rare) |
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