Something dramatically new in terrace gardening will soon find its way onto American patios from Italy, where large pots—what might be called water planters—containing waterlilies or lotus is a new and exciting innovation.
The popularity of water planters in this country will be spurred by the growing use of patios and terraces in all sections of the country and by the long-time enthusiasm for waterlilies among perceptive gardeners.
There is a good reason for this enthusiasm. Not only do waterlilies run a rainbow of color, but they offer both (lay and night-blooming sorts) and hose with an enchanting fragrance.
The flowers of the-hardy kinds seemingly float on the water’s surface, while those of the tropicals appear well above the water on stiff stems. There are both large and pygmy sizes.
Water Planters to Use
Containers can be found or built in a variety of sizes and shapes. Everything can be utilized, from stone or clay bowls to Chinese woks and metal, plastic, waterproofed wood, or freeform concrete.
If you make your own from waterproofed wood, use pine, white cedar, or cypress, not redwood, which turns the water black.
Some planters might be mounted on castors so they can be moved into prominent positions during flowering periods and kept in a less important location before blooming.
Some firms are now handling containers of adequate size, 36”, 46”, or 60” inches in diameter. These containers are designed for artistic use on terraces or patios, bringing cool water magic.
Choosing Hardy Water Lilies
When you have decided on the type of water planter, you can choose from at least 30 kinds of hardy waterlilies and many more tropicals.
All the standard waterlilies can be utilized even in the smallest of pools, but the pygmy types have the advantage of not becoming pot bound so rapidly.
Nymphaea Tetragona
Nymphaea tetragona is probably the group’s hardest and smallest flowered species. Still, it is an extremely shy propagator and might not be available as readily as others.
Its dainty white flowers are no larger than a quarter. This waterlily could even be grown in a standard-sized home aquarium.
Two Best Pygmies
The two best pygmies for tub culture are Yellow Pygmy and Joan Pring. Sometimes, both of them can be left outdoors and will survive severe winters, but we usually recommend taking them in.
(Winter storage, incidentally, is simplified by the easily moved water planter). Aurora is another gem with very small leaves and flowers.
The color of the bloom changes with each successive day of opening. (The life of a waterlily bloom is three to four days).
Nymphaea Colorata
The most outstanding of the diminutive tropical waterlilies is Nymphaea colorata from Africa.
Its leaves grow in a compact mass while the numerous, small, violet-purple flowers arise from the leaf cluster. Several striking hybrids have been developed from this species.
Bluette and Director Moore are two of these hybrids, both blue, while Patricia is a free-blooming pygmy with crimson flowers.
Colors in the day-blooming tropicals include everything but true red, while the hardy lilies miss only the blue shades.
Attractive Nymphaeas
Nymphaeas are not the only aquatics for water planters. The sacred lotus or nelumbium is also attractive to them, especially if height is desired.
Nelumbiums produce large flowers in shades of pink and yellow. There are also white forms.
The shield-like leaves are large, carrying on long petioles, and when it rains, the raindrops roll around like glistening jewels.
The mature seedpods are often gilded and used in winter bouquets with dried foliage.
Shallow Water Plants
Shallow-water plants like the following will prove quite ornamental:
- the dwarf cattail (Typha minima)
- the giant arrowhead (Sagittaria montevidensis)
- water poppy (Aponogeton distachyus)
- the water hyacinth, (Eichhornia crassipes)
- pickerel weed, (Pontederia cordata)
So will the water canna (Thalia dealbata), the Egyptian papyrus (Cypents papyrus), and the common umbrella plant (Cypents alternifolius).
In a formal pool, most of these plants look attractive in the corners and center. In others, they can be planted anywhere along the edge. Or try them in their own separate containers for patio use.
Culture of Aquatics
The care and culture of aquatics pose no special problems. Once the pool is planted, there is no weeding, hoeing, or hand watering, only an occasional pruning of yellow or dead leaves and flowers.
Standard Water Lilies
For the standard waterlilies, bushel-size boxes are needed, or the plants can be set directly in the soil where there is a mud bottom—they need about a foot of soil and a foot or slightly less of water.
Pygmy Waterlilies
The pygmy waterlilies need smaller containers and about 6” inches of water above the crown.
Any good garden loam is right for the plants, but be sure to mix in some kind of complete fertilizer—top with pea gravel to keep the water clear.
Keep the pool in a sunny location for 5 or 6 hours daily for flowering plants. Where freezing weather is unknown, tropicals may be left out from year to year.
Otherwise, they should be treated as annuals, and new plants should be purchased each spring unless greenhouse facilities are available.
Tropical Water Lilies
A tropical waterlily will produce a tuber about the size of an acorn. The tuber can be easily removed and stored in moist sand in a mason jar in a cool place.
In February, the tuber can be potted in a small flower pot, placed in a heated aquarium, and the plants start.
When three to four floating leaves appear, pinch off the plant just above the tuber and below the young roots and pot separately.
The old tuber will produce additional plants, if needed, at about three-week intervals. The time to plant tropical waterlilies outdoors depends on the climate.
Water Temperature
In the Midwest, the second week of May usually finds water temperatures up to stay at about 70° degrees Fahrenheit. But the pool should be readied a few weeks ahead of actual planting time.
Hardy waterlilies can be undisturbed for a few years if not frozen. Containers should be lowered in winter below freezing level, or the pool can be covered with boards and a layer of leaves or straw to prevent the freezing of rootstocks.
Most of the other aquatics will also have to be taken in for the winter, but ordinarily, they lend themselves to division readily, and only a few starts are needed for next year’s crop. Some of them can be kept in aquariums, others in moist pots.
44659 by George H. Pring