Water Lilies - how deep?
Sue Alexandre
Just doing a little "planning ahead" here, and have a question. I've often
read that people are putting their lily plants on the bottom of the pond,
rather than a shelf, to keep the stems growing long and providing more
surface water coverage, rather than planting shallow where the stems only
grow a few inches and all the pads bunch together. But if I put the plant
on the bottom of the pond now, what do I do with it when winter comes, when
we're THEN supposed to drop the plant to the bottom for over-wintering?
If it's already at the deepest part, what do I do with it when winter comes?
Any thoughts?
Sue
talu...@my-deja.com
one yet.
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
George Sullivan
around 2' deep and you have a hardy lily.
George
"Sue Alexandre" <salex...@home.com> wrote in message
news:6OX45.5634$7W2....@news1.wwck1.ri.home.com...
Ceos twpc
My water lilies are all on the bottom & just stay there for the Winter ;-)
Laurie in Michigan
Come into the garden, my flowers want to meet you!
http://members.aol.com/iluvflwrs2/Laurie.html
DFRyan35012020
Hey there Hi there Ho there Sue!
We just cut ours back and leave 'em be.
I don't understand what the problem is...but all of my lilies are so dinky :(
peace....debbie
Bullfrog Ed
winter. Cut the dead lily leaves and stalks, leaving approximately 2 to
3 inches of tuber at the base of the plant. Hardy bog plants and
marginal plants will need all of the dead leaves trimmed down just above
the water level.
Tropical lilies and floating plants can be brought inside for
the winter or treated as an annual and replaced each season.
Remove the tropical water lily after the first frost. Cut the lily
leaves and keep only the tubers. Store the tubers in a greenhouse or
basement.
It is exciting to come home from work in the evening and be
surprised by the flaming red color of a newly blooming tropical lily or
watch a dragonfly take a minute to rest on the catkin of a cattail.
Plants add an element of life to a pond. They add color and texture to
the palette. They soften the rocky edges of the pond and provide both an
attractive vertical and horizontal accent to the landscape. As if they
haven't done enough already, they also help provide good water quality
and a healthy balanced ecosystem.
How Low Can You Go?
The first step in succeeding with aquatic plants is providing the
proper depths for the types of plants that are going to be planted in
the pond. A properly built pond should be excavated with a series of
shelves. Most residential ponds will typically be excavated with two
shelves before dropping to the ponds deepest point. The first shelf is
excavated approximately 1" - 12" below the proposed water level. This
will provide an area for marginal plants to be planted around the edges
such as, Cattails, Iris, reeds, and rushes. The second shelf is prime
planting area for Lilies, Lotus and plants loving deeper water. The
second shelf is typically excavated 12" - 18" down from the surface. The
final drop beyond the second shelf provides an area for fish to
hibernate during winter or escape from the heat of the summer.
LOSE THOSE POTS !!!!!!!!!!!!
When installing a Aquascape Pro Pond Kit, one of our goals when
constructing a pond, is to make it look as natural as possible. As much
as we like our BIOFALLS and Skimmers we do not want to see any portion
of them once they are installed. We also take this one step further when
it comes to aquatic plants. Black pots are ugly! When was the last time
you came across a natural pond in a forest preserve that had the plants
lined up around the perimeter in pots? If you want the pond to look
natural, lose the pots!
Have you ever heard that plants help filter the water and reduce
algae? Yes, aquatic plants will help improve the water quality and
reduce algae. However, they will be far more successful at doing so if
they are taken out of their pots and planted directly into the gravel
substrate. Aquatic plants play an important role in balancing the
ecosystem of the pond. The plants compete with algae for nutrients such
as nitrogen and phosphorus. Aquatic plants bio-accumulate toxic metals
and wastes that would otherwise reduce the quality of water and possibly
be harmful to the aquatic life found in the pond. Marginal plants will
thrive once out of their pots. The proof is in the pudding! Spread away
the gravel from a typical marginal plant that is planted directly into
the gravel and you will find a network of fibrous roots traveling
throughout the gravel, sometimes as far as two or three feet from the
base of the plant. The roots are one giant filter taking nutrients
directly from the substrate of the pond where fish waste and other
organic debris settle and begin to decompose.
Every Aquascape Pro Pond Kit we install is "rocked and graveled". We
use 6" - 18" boulders to support and hide the vertical walls in the pond
and then spread approximately 2 inches of 1/4" - 3" gravel along all of
the shelves. The gravel provides the plants with perfect planting media.
When ready to plant the pond, simply choose the areas you wish to plant
the marginals. Move the gravel aside with your hands, remove the
marginal plant from the pot, wash away any loose soil attached to the
roots of the plant, place the plant in the desired location, and spread
the gravel around the base of the plants. Smaller boulders and
additional gravel can be used around the base of the plant to support it
until the plant roots take hold.
Lily Pockets
A little extra digging during the excavation stage of the pond can
provide a perfect planting area for lilies. Lily pockets are simply a
bowl dug into the 2nd shelf. The pockets are usually excavated about 12"
- 18" wide and 6" - 8" deep ( diagram available upon request). When the
liner is set in the pond, it will conform to the depression of the lily
pocket. We fill the lily pocket with a base of topsoil or aquatic plant
soil and cover with a layer of gravel to keep the soil from becoming
suspended in the water table. The lily can be planted directly into the
plant pocket. The plant pockets create the natural appearance of lilies
coming directly out of the base of the pond.
Keep in mind their are some plants that can be very aggressive and
should be kept in containers, such as certain types of Horsetail and
Lotus. You may want to plant tropicals in containers if you are planning
on bringing them inside in the winter. It is best to try and disguise
the containers by encircling small boulders around the outer edges.
Marginal Plants
Marginal plants are typically found along the perimeter of ponds, lakes,
wetlands, and streams. These plants are used to soften the boulder edges
and help create a smooth transition from the water in the pond to the
terrestrial planting areas surrounding the pond. Some of the popular
hardy marginal plants such as Pickerel Rush, Variegated Sweetflag,
Golden Club, Variegated Dwarf Common Reed, and Louisiana Iris. Most
marginal plants like 1" - 8" of water making the 1st shelf in the pond,
as well as edges of streams and upper pools ideal planting areas. Any
reputable aquatic plant dealer will have varieties of marginal plants to
choose from.
Lilies
Lilies are one of the most popular aquatic plants. Their ability to
spread a multitude of leaves across the surface of the water and flower
throughout the season make them a sought after addition to the pond.
Lily pads also provide a great deal of shade from the heat of the summer
sun allowing fish to retreat underneath the shelter of their leaves.(we
use 4-6 inches of soil topped with cat litter and/or gravel as a media
for water lilies).
Hardy Lilies
Hardy lilies come in a wide array of colors, shapes and sizes.
Hardies can remain in the pond year round down to climates as cold a
zone 3. Each spring their stems will begin to raise the small red curled
up leaves to the surface of the pond. Later in the spring their flowers
will begin to appear on the surface of the water. Hardy Lilies typically
bloom from May through September. Their flowers usually open in the
early morning and close by mid to late afternoon. Fertilizing the lilies
using a time release fertilizer tablet will help increase the amount of
blooms yielded each season. The fertilizer tab is simply pushed into the
substrate next to the base of the lily.
Tropical Lilies
Tropical lilies produce vibrant colorful blooms that reach above the
surface of the water. Their leaves come in an abundance of sizes, shapes
and colors. Tropical lilies can be planted in zones 3 - 11 when the
water temperature is consistently above 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Most
tropical are treated as annuals each year in colder climates. However,
they can be brought inside during the winter time, if given proper care.
Tropical lilies come in two categories: day bloomers and night
bloomers. Day blooming tropical lily blooms open in the early morning
and close in the afternoon. Night bloomers, however begin to open in the
early evening and continue to stay open until late the next morning.
Night bloomers are very appealing to pond owners who work by day and
enjoy their pond by night.
Floating Plants
Floating plants are some of the easiest plants to grow in the pond.
Their are many varieties of floating plants. Two popular floaters-water
hyacinth and water lettuce- are readily available throughout the
country. However, due to their very rapid growth, some states with
warmer climates have strict regulations against growing them.
Floaters are great filter plants. Their fibrous roots hand down in the
water trapping sediment and utilizing many nutrients. The open top of
the BIOFALLS and upper pools of streams are ideal areas to place
floating plants. If the waterfall carries them over the face of the
BIOFALLS, try holding them back by placing a green bamboo stick across
the face or using monofiliment fishing line tied across the front.
Floating plants can be placed in the pond, but need to be situated out
of the reach of the skimmer.(water hyacinth camouflage the BIOFALLS and
filter the water).
Oxygenating Plants
Oxygenators are often the most overlooked plants in the watergarden.
They are typically submersed and don't grab the onlooker's attention
like the lilies and marginal plants do. Oxygenators, however do serve an
important role in the pond. Oxygenators help reduce algae by competing
directly for the same food source. They also provide protection and
coverage for small fish and fry. Oxygenators such as Anacharis, Milfoil
and Hornwort can be planted by simply pushing a bundle right into the
gravel or sticking them around the edges of a lily pocket.
Happy Ponding,
BullfrogEd
Landscape Temptations Inc.
Aquascape Designs Ecosystem Pro Pond Kits
http://www.pondguys.com
Sue Alexandre wrote:
>
> Hi Everyone:
how
>
> We just cut ours back and leave 'em be.
> I don't understand what the problem is...but all of my lilies are so dinky :(
> peace....debbie
Hi debbie,
Do you feed them?
l8r - how
no NEWS is good
--
When you give up freedom to get security, you get neither.
DFRyan35012020
Hi How,
No I haven't yet. Tomorrow I'm going to add a spike. Ya need to understand
How....I do Not do well with water plants 8-} peace....debbie
Jerrispond
>How....I do Not do well with water plants 8-}
Debbie.....stop saying that...you will become what you speak...speak life into
your hands and ponds. I love ya girl.... Jerri
KenCo
>
> Hi Everyone:
>
> Just doing a little "planning ahead" here, and have a question. I've often
> read that people are putting their lily plants on the bottom of the pond,
> rather than a shelf, to keep the stems growing long and providing more
> surface water coverage, rather than planting shallow where the stems only
> grow a few inches and all the pads bunch together. But if I put the plant
> on the bottom of the pond now, what do I do with it when winter comes, when
> we're THEN supposed to drop the plant to the bottom for over-wintering?
> If it's already at the deepest part, what do I do with it when winter comes?
> Any thoughts?
> Sue
ea type of lily has a diff. depth requirement,
dwarfs ususlly 1.5' deep (spread 1-3')
meds 2-3' deep or so (spread 3-6')
lg. lilies which spread 8+ sq ft do best in 3' or so
--
KenCo Fish & Supplies ICQ # 1028648 ph/fax 401-781-9642
Shipping plants/fish a specialty. Permalon pond liner dist.
Imported Koi,Goldfish,Tropicals,Piranhas,Stingrays etc.
http://www.kencofish.com mailto:ke...@kencofish.com
DFRyan35012020
How nicely said Jerri {{huggers}}} It just stopped raining so I'm going out
now to add some house plant spikes. Oops..guess I shouldn't have said the "r"
word 8-} I'm nearly certain I over fed them last season and burned them up.
Enjoy the remainder of your holiday! peace...debbie