I picked up a water gardening book from the library earlier this week. And they have photos of some of the most gorgeous lotus I've ever seen. (Guess I've been looking in the wrong places, or something!)
Boy oh boy - I think I've about worn out those pages, drooling over them! Springtime Nursery (eWaterlily.com) http://gardenwatchdog.com/c/1593/ seems to have about the best prices on plants - $15 or so for most varieties - but they're out of stock on several already, so if I'm getting one, I need to be ordering it pronto.
Any recommendations for a variety suitable for my pond? It's situated in partial shade (mostly afternoon sun), and I'm thinking one of the smaller varieties would be more in scale (the pond is kidney shaped and slopes from 12" deep to about 30". It's probably 8' wide at its widest point, 10' long. I'm thinking one of the shorter ones (2'-4') would be best, given the scale of the pond, but I'm open to any and all suggestions.
I want a nelumbo - baaaaaad!
If you want a big one grow it in a tub,as far as I know they really need full sun to bloom,so grow it in a tub in full sun.......
CC what do you do with them in the winter? Do you think I could grow one in a 5-gallon, ceramic crock? Or wouldn't it be wide enough?
a dwarf might be OK,I grew them in those big tubs they sell at K-mart and everywhere,the ones with the handles.If you don't like the way the tubs look just dig a hole big enough to drop the tub in......
Durring the winter I drop mine in the pond,but some people put them in garages and basements...I never tried it though.
Vols, lotus sell out fast. You need to get them early as they are shipped when just breaking dormancy. ewaterlily/waterplants.com have the best prices and good stuff too. If they are out, try lilyblooms. They are more expensive but the lotus tubers they send are humungous!
The nelumbo is gorgeous, and so is Mrs Perry D Slocum, she's my favorite.
You can grow lotus in a tub in your pond but I wouldn't. They are crazy and will jump even the biggest pots the first year and you will be cussing it, trust me. They also only like 3 or 4 inches of standing water over them. It's almost impossible to manipulate a big pot in a pond to the proper depth. They want full sun and are very heavy feeders. But, you should not feed them until they have at least two nice standing leaves. If you feed them to early, they burn.
I found the best way to grow it is making it a bog of it's own. The minimum size 3' around and 2' deep. Dig a circular hole, not a square one. The tubers grow in a repeated circle, they don't like corners.
Next line the bog with epdm liner, either pond or roofing. Thin plastic will not work. Lotus are too aggessive.
Put the dirt back into the lined hole about 3 or 4" from the top. Fill the bog with water and your ready to roll.
Lay the lotus tuber on top of the soil. Be careful not to break the growing tips. If they break, your lotus is a goner. You can weigh the tuber down with a brick or rock. you should have 3 or 4 inches of standing water on the top and the tuber will float if you don't weigh it down. Once, it takes root, you can lift the brick.
Always keep standing water in the bog. Use mosquito dunks to ward of mosquitos. They are inexpensive and can be broken into small pieces for such a small area as your lotus bog. Each piece lasts about a month.
Before you know it, you will have beautiful lotus. They will take your breath away.
I am in zone 5a and the lotus winter over beautifully in a bog like this, as long as it's at least 2' deep. While mine grew good in the pond the previous year, I almost lost them to rot wintering them over in the bottom of the pond. I babied them most of the summer and made them bogs of their own in the fall. I can't wait until spring to see how they did. I hope I got them in early enough to establish.
This message was edited Friday, Feb 21st 11:44 PM
Check waterplants.com also they have them at real good prices too. :-)
I like that hole in the ground idea....
think I'll try that this year!
I remembered a couple of days ago, this is the perfect time to buy them. There is a hatchery/water garden place about 15 minutes from me. Last year in the summer, they only had two for sale. One was $50 and the other was $100!! They have like ten 'water gardens' growing in big rectangles. I believe she told me each was 1/2 an acre. Most of them are FULL of Lotus, yet they can't sell them. They only pot up so many and when they are gone, they are gone. It is awesome to drive past there in the summer and see them all in bloom!! I'm going to have to try to remember to call them tomorrow.
Hmmmm. Now y'all have me thinking (which is always a bit dangerous.) Okay, what if I put it in a large pot in my smaller pond (3x5 pre-formed, ~ 2 feet deep, and it would be the only plant in there (it gets more sun anyway....)
I'm trying to get out of building another bog garden - have one already, but it's next to my bigger pond, and is definitely partial shade, and not that deep. Plus I don't think my primroses and water Forget-me-nots would appreciate being moved again :)
Vols, that's what I did the first year. I had one potted and put in a 100 gallon preform and another potted in my 5000 gallon pond. They both jumped the pot very quickly. All of the good tubers ended up in water and not dirt. I sunk them to the bottom of the big pond for over wintering and most of the tubers rotted by spring. I was barely able to salvage enough to grow this past summer. I babied them all season and finally got them in there own bogs. They are much happier in muddy dirt and a little water than a lot of water and a little dirt.
Here's a picture of the first lotus bog, with a very sad lotus. There are two bogs now and after just a couple of weeks of being bogged, the lotus came out of their funk.
I love this company as well. I put my lotus orders in at the end of summer for a spring shipment. I have five different types coming.
I'm going to have to try the bog idea. So far I just grow them in big tubs.
Okay, when did GV change to Terry???? I know she really is but when did it change HERE?? LOL
Ummmm, yesterday, I think...or the day before. I'm sure I'll get used to seeing my "new" name around here...
Did the Vols tick you off or something?? LOL
I have some for trade if you are intersted.