Planting hardy waterlilies

4/26/99 Subject: Planting hardy waterlilies

Q:I live beside a natural pond that gets covered in duckweed each summer. In some places the pond is over 6' deep, and I bought a couple of nymphaea to try; they will not be "tame" lilies. The bottom of this pond - which is also a holding pond for water on its way to the nearby lake - is MUCK. Can I just throw the rhizomes out into the deep water? (I don't own a boat.) Maybe attach a stone to the "root" end? Or is it absolutely mandatory to put the rhizomes in a basket with soil and gravel and get the basket out to a depth of about 3'? This is Zone 4. Thanks a bunch.

Flowerfiend

A: Flowerfiend,

Growing the lilies in 6 feet of water is asking alot of the lily. If you can culture the lilies in baskets or pots until they get a few leaves up and move them into 2 or 3 feet of water and just let them grow out of the baskets into the depth of water they will tolerate.

Or rubberband a stone to the tuber and cast it into the water and cross your fingers.

Thanks

Scott Bates

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