Help me select the right plants

Our new pond if filling now and I need to buy 2 or 3 plants. Because it's not very big, and is in part shade, I need a fairly small water lily that doesn't have to have full sun. Of course I'd love one with a long bloom time. I also might want a small lotus. I'm not sure what else I should get, maybe something upright like a miniature bamboo.

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Hi!!! You have at least two very good water garden sources in your area. Jesse Israel in Asheville has lots of water garden plants and a small water garden and another is in Boiling Springs NC and is called Two Bees. The owner of Two Bees is Alan Beebe and the number is 704-434-5313. We have purchased almost all our plants from Alan. We've only bought fish and fish food from Israel. Our water garden is 5600 gallons so the plants are huge however I'll be happy to email you the next time we go to Keowee-Toxaway and share some of my sweet flag (yellow) and pickeral weed (purple) with you however I should tell you that our water garden is mostly in full sun. Both of these plants have to be brought in for winter. The lilies are very big and would not do well in a small pond but I have seen the ones you are talking about. I don't have any lotus because they are not hardy and I have trouble with space as far as storing all our other water plants plus the ones I bring in from the porches, etc. Our water garden is 4 and 1/2 to 5 feet deep so the lilies overwinter fine. There is also a very beautiful water garden in the town of Boiling Springs. It has a double waterfall, gazebo, the landscaping around it is to die for, and the fish are mostly goldfish and shubunkins but I think there are a couple of koi. It's definitely worth visiting. Good Luck!!! vic

Thanks vic. I'm pretty sure I would be interested in the pickerel. Have you even been to Perry's Water Gardens in Franklin? They put out a lush catalog, but I don't know how good they are.....

Gee Wiz,,I wish we had a selection of places to go for water plants here in Western PA. I'm jealous.

MzMunchken, the pond will only hold 800 gallons. It is about 1 foot deep at one end and up to 30" deep at the other.
We won't be putting in a fountain because it will have 2 little waterfalls coming into it.
I went to a water garden supplier today in Cashiers called the Lilypad and bought some chameleon plants. I liked the Zebra Grass too and the white pickerel. Now all I need is a water lily that likes about 1/2 shade, is not too big, but blooms continuously. I am hoping for a white, pink, peach or yellow one. I don't think a blue or purple one would show up as well in a shady area
I looked at lotus too but they are not hardy here, for the most part.
What was the floating thingy with the air bladders in the stems? They were not rooted into a pot or soil of any kind, but had white roots dangling below them. Are they water Hyacinths? They were not blooming today.

I bought the pickerel and water hyacinth (not hardy here) and some zebra rush today and waded right in and planted them. I also bought 3 koi. It's a cement pond; I hope the alkalinity doesnt kill the fish. Is there a way to restore the acidic balance? Add some vinegar? LOL

Vic,why aren't the lotus hardy,and the sweet flag??I'm in zone 5 and my sweet flag and lotus make it through the winters great.I just drop them to the bottom,covered in netting to keep the koi out.CC

Woodspirit, the "floating thingy with the air bladders in the stems with white roots dangling below them" sounds like the perfect description of water hyacinth.

There's a photo of one in bloom in the database: http://davesgarden.com/plants/go/661.html Now just imagine it without blooms, if you can.....mine only bloom occasionally (I think because they receive too much shade.)

That's it! I bought one that was forming 2 babies. I didn't realize it was an annual in this area. I was in one forum where we discussed how to winter them over inside. It doesn't look like anyone has had much luck. The owner of Lily Pad in Cashiers is very knowledgeable and she said it was the warmth that made them hard to hold over. If you have power outages in the winter, the plant will freeze. She said one of those little heating coils for coffee cups helped one friend to winter hers over. I suggested the top of a refrigerator or water heater and she said that might work if they get enough light, too. She also said if they didn't bloom, to turn them upside down for about 24 hours and it would force them. The best way is to use the pond skimmer net, corral them over to the side and turn them over and hold them there with the net because they will try to upright themselves.