Hardy Water Lilies

The water lily is to our lakes and ponds as the rose is to the flower garden.

In the summer stillness the water lily, moored as if by hidden cables, conjures up a romantic and peaceful atmosphere. It certainly adds beauty to any backyard pond or patio water garden.

First, an interesting biology lesson.

There are big differences between water lilies and the regular soil-based plants. Soil-based plants have tiny root hairs, used to absord water. Water plants do not.

Since water lilies are water-based plants they do not need those tiny root hairs. They have developed different mechanisms for absorbing water.

Water lilies also grow their stomata (similar to sweat cells) on top of their leaves...not on the bottom like most other plants. It would be hard to eliminate excess water and absorb oxygen when the sweat gland is
below water, right?

HOW TO GROW A WATER LILY

The hardy pond lily is a tough plant. Unless it freezes solid, you will find it is one of the easiest plants to grow. Besides pruning the dying flowers and leaves, during the summer, the water lily requires very little attention. They just sit in their pond and bloom.

And bloom they do. There is a vast array of types, colors and sizes of water lilies to select from.

The hardy water lily typically blooms in the late morning and closes up again in the later afternoon. The factors that effect this are the time of the year, the heat of the sater and the amount of sunlight it is getting.

This means that for those who have to go to work each day, they will only see the blooms on weekends. The tropical variety of water lilies bloom in the evenings.

No lily will bloom in the shade. Hardy pond lilies require at least six hours of sunlight a day. One can purchase hybrids which will bloom with a little less sunlight. You will find them marketed for this very purpose. Think about it for a moment, though. How many trees are there out in the middle of a lake
or big swamp where we find these lilies in nature?

AVOID SPLASHING WATER

Water lilies do not like being near splashing water.


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