Excited to share some pics of my first water lily

I got a Tina tropical semidwarf, and it bloomed! I'm new to gardening and am so excited! It's blue/purple color is so vibrant! I'm trying to get it to propagate vivaporously, but so far no luck, although almost every leaf has a nub.

that is beautiful!

Lovely, flowerehj. Just enjoy it for now.

Thank you, nothing I did! One of the lilypads is showing the tiniest growth on it! It could be taking off! What is your experience with viviparous propagation?

wow...that is beautiful! i miss my tina. she went to that giant lily pad in the sky. :(

where did you get yours flowerehj? i am determined to try again! :)

If you're asking me, flowerehj, I collected hardy water lilies and added a couple of tropicals on a lark, but the hardies held my interest. As such, propagation for me consisted of simple division of the plants each year.

Your waterlily is lovely, and I suspect that it's only the first of many - better start digging those extra ponds! (Get a lotus - you'll play for hours sprinkling water droplets on the leaves).

Slocum Watergardens: http://floridaplants.com/Store/slocumindex.htm
I went to see them and they were very helpful. Plants arrived exactly when they say they did, with buds already on the waterlily. It's been blooming non-stop since the first flower came out. (We're on the 3rd flower now!). What is the magic with water droplets on lotus leaves? Macatmom, you made me curious!

thanks for the link. they must be huge for those prices?!?

To be honest, I wouldn't know. The image I'm attaching is of the waterlily in the pond for about a week. So you can figure. They are not huge in my opinion, but definitely a good size. To be honest, I don't want them huge- I like them small in my small pond! Hey, wait a minute! I paid only 25, plus 10 for shipping and handling (the lily plus dwarf cattail and an oxygenating plant) I just checked the price at the website... What the heck? Maybe you should just call them. ?? Weird. I'm new to gardening, so I don't know what is a good deal/what isn't, but I do know the plants arrived healthy and I was very happy. ? :-S

haha! changed the prices on you. LOL i just bought a lotus from texas water lilies. i like their prices. however, they don't have tina. :(

No fair, flower! You have to discover that for yourself. You don't need a new pond for a lotus - you can grow a dwarf lotus in a large tub. Before long, you'll be a water garden addict. Have fun with your new hobby - it will give you lots of pleasure.

your question about viviparous propagation got me curious. check out http://www.victoria-adventure.org/waterlilies_images/sean_vivips/page1.html for more info. it's great that tina is one of the lilies that propagates this way. she was my first lily but i lost her! i just ordered one today from texas water lilies for $13.95. let the fun begin! :)

Haha! Hey, that's a great link, I also found that one. I'm just not going to set up all that stuff that guy has. I'm doing it out in the yard, in the sunlight in pondwater. If I started selling them as a business, this guy's setup sounds great! Hope your Tina will be great! Good price! You did good!

good luck to you flower! i will be doing mine outside, too. we have enough sun and heat here in arizona. lack the humidity though unless it's the monsoon season.

does anyone know what the minimum planting depth is for tina?

Hi tucsonplumeriaz, I don't really know. Mine is not so deep, only about 2 1/2 ft down, and you have to remember that the water lily pot sits on the bottom, with the lily's stems starting at the top of the pot (about 8"). Maybe someone else with a bit more experience would know?

tina arrived today...wow! twl shipped a very good product. i am impressed.

Great! I'd love to see pictures once you have Tina installed :)

i put her in the lotus container for right now. it is 22" x 32" across and 7" deep. the bulb(?) would be almost against the bottom of the container. i don't know... help??? LOL

where did you have your previous Tina- you know the one that has gone to the lilypad in the sky? Looks like you need something deeper. The roots have to be able to go somewhere :)

it was in a container that was too small. can't the roots just spread outward?

Hmmmm. I wouldn't know. I do think that the lily pads will spread a lot to make a huge circle if there's no space for them to grow upward a little length. It does that in my pond, and I don't like that very much. Can't you buy a larger deeper tub? I saw this one in another forum. I thought it was nice, it would suit your purpose exactly. I think it would be worth the investment.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/fp.php?pid=6495257

i like that one. i guess i will just look around. for now she will have to hang out with the lotus. :( thanks for your help.

of course, that one is large and i will need another lily and fish and...LOL

haha! Like that really makes you sad :) I've seen Home Depot carry some hard plastic shell ponds- can't remember if a plain round one was among them. So, do you have a whole bunch of plumeria? (just guessing from your name) I love plumeria- reminds me of Hawaii.... Oh, such paradise! What's your name tucsonplumeriaz? By the way, if I'd known my Tina was going to have babies this soon (that I didn't kill, haha), I would have told you and maybe we could have traded. But anyhow.... (The vivap lilypad has little green things growing from it!!!! YeaY!!! Have you done that before with your previous Tina?

Froukje

yeah, plumeria is what i do. i'll share some pics once they start blooming. i should have some extras for trade later.

i had not heard of the vivap until you mentioned it. i am looking forward to trying it though. and btw, i am sad that i'd have to buy more plants. yeah, right! :)

i have seen them at home depot, too. i will check there and lowes. i want to get her established before she starts growing fast in all this heat.

detrick

Good idea Detrick- mine just took off like crazy. It's bursting out with new leaves and buds every day! I'm hoping to get a hydrangea for my baby Tina by the way- so far no luck! Can't wait for your plumeria picks!

I think Lowes has the round ponds for 29.99 reg price with no pump. They have 3 plant shelves on the sides but there is a deeper spot in the middle. Last winter they sold them on clearance here for 20.00 with a pump and fountain.

I have had only one plummie bloom so far. There are also inflos on Cerise, Aztec Gold, and another rainbow type I got from HI. The rest aren't doing anything yet lol.

aaahhh! she does plumeria, too. LOL my aztec gold had inflos. i absolutely love that one - fresh georgia peaches.

okay, i went to home depot and lowes this morning and i ended up buying a tote container from wally world. LOL it's deep enough and 18" across. should i plant tina in a container and sink the container? or should i just plant her straight in the medium of the container holding the water?

thanks again.

here is tina in her new home. i planted her at a depth that would allow the unfurled leaves to float (9.5"). i'll add oxygenating plants and fish next week.

tina has vivap fuzzies...woo! hoo! i think it's time to try the vivap propagation.

Hey, that's great! I still don't have the propagation down yet. I hope I can figure it out soon! Let me know if yours does it and if you find any tricks!

i don't have it down either. heck, i haven't even tried it before. LOL well, here goes...

Hey you 2, Dragonfly aquatics told me Lotus should only be 6in. deep under the water. That is where I have mine and they're doing good. Water lilys can go 2or 3 ft deep. Mine are 2&1/2 ft. deep and I can leave them all winter and they are safe. Don't have to bring them in for the winter. But I'm in zone 7. Hope that helps. Mekos

Hey Mekos! Join the club! haha! I've been getting curious about Lotus! Insidious!

What do you want to know? I don't know if I can answer, but I'll try

I don't really have questions, I've just kind of become curious about whether it would be a great addition to my mini pond. But I hear it takes up a lot of room? My pond is about 3.5 by 5 feet (appx). It has 1 waterlily now, and a dwarf cattail. Do you think I should fill it up more?

Different Lotus are different sizes. Where you got it should have info for that. When I got mine they toldme it needed to float for a few days then put on top of clay mix and keep weighted down untilit started to grow leaves then put plant food tablets in the dirt and keep 6inches under water level. Water lilys can go to 3 feet but my kind of Lotus shouldn't for my area. And they said the lotus didn't like moving water, but mine is, I don't want mosquitos in my pond. Mine has spread so fast and put in so many roots, I'm wxcited. I didn't realize it had spread so much until yesterday when I checked while I was pulling water lilys out to mail off. They also said it would rise above the water shortly and stand tall above it. The blooms would be in the air above the water, where water lilys bloom on the water. How is your baby lily doing? Do you think it is growing a new one? I sent your stuff off in the mail already so you should get it soon. mekos

Great! My waterlily is growing fast: putting new buds out all the time and new leafs too. How soon do you think I should check for it growing a new waterlily? How do you know to check?

Not a time limit that I know of, just when you are curious. If yours is in a tub on a deck or porch, I'd check often, if in a pond where it's difficult, probably wouldn't disturb too much. I have 2 ponds, one is deeper than the other so I can overwinter in the deep one and the smaller one I'm just finishing for this very reason. I can get to it better. I have the Mrs. Perry D. Slocum, First Lady and forgot how to spell the other one, all Lotus but my water lilys are Hardy. I don't know if it's going to work, but I'm trying a couple pads of the lotus to see if I can get another one under blue lights and water. I guess I'll find shortly.

see the green dot just to the left of the red line? i am so excited because that's the beginnings of the new lily. woo hoo!!! i noticed it yesterday afternoon. by nighttime it had elongated from the white node.