Anyone have a lotus in their pond???

I have a couple that I will be getting. It was suggested that I shouldn't plant/put them in the pond as they won't do well as they are heavy feeders and require lots of fertilizer? I want one in the pond so bad that I can almost taste it.. Please tell me that you have one and it does well... :)

Tia

Yes, Tia, I am stalking you!!! :lol: :lol:

I don't have lotus in my pond; it is not big enough. They are extremely beautiful! What do you have to lose by putting them in? You might be pleasantly surprised!

I've heard lotus need really wide pots. And, if they are heavy feeders, you will just need to fertilize more often. I am not a pond expert by any means, but I am pretty knowledgable about plants. I would get an aquatic plant fertilizer with a high first number and a really high second number on the label. The first number is nitrogen content (green growth) and the second number is phosphorus (flower development). The third number is potassium for root development.

I bet in a few months you'll be posting pics of beautiful lotus flowers!!!

Stalker eh? :lol:

I was planning on using my water buckets from my horsey days but they may not be big enough. Cryerbaby I have a Momo Botan coming and a white lotus but don't know what the name is. The Momo is supposed to be a smaller plant but I don't know how small really. The other I think should be a big one so I better find a good sized tub for it! The only concern would be the dreaded algae of course but I so want one! :wub:

See, I knew you knew a thing or two ;)
Tia

Lotus are very easy going plants. If fertility levels are generally perky for most plants, lotus will thrive, either bare root or potted.

Only snag is, they are very fast growing and they leave a lot of debris behind them, the foliage is quite tatty when it is faded.

Lotus are vulnerable to the same crown rot that devestates hybrid waterlilies, folk who can't grow lotus, probably see hybrid waterlilies persistently fail, as well.

Oh, another snag, potting them in dirt can be rather hit or miss, the dirt can be too dense for the roots to develop, the fertility levels can be too clumsy and scorch the roots, the pot for lotus can be rather cumbersome, a one way trip when it is too heavy.

Oh, if lotus do take off, which a healthy one will, it will make a pond a mess of runners and tubers all over the place, the runners do like to scoot along at the rate of six foot per month.

So, it can be a bit tricky striking a happy medium, getting lotus to thrive, without it becoming a mess.

It is quite possible, to set a single lotus tuber on a one foot deep ledge with just a rock on it to hold it down and for that lotus to scoot all over the pond and be blooming in a couple of months. Very doable.

Regards, andy
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21940871@N06/
http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l42/adavisus/

I have a lotus...but the koi mainly have killed it off I think it's still alive...hopefully! Thy are not good for goldfish/koi ponds.

Thanks for all the pointers adavisus :)

I have an idea for a pot that I can use to plant the lotus in and pull up out of my pond (and don't laugh too hard) with my tractor. I have been clued in that the pots will be heavy and too heavy for me to pick up, me lacking big muscles and all. :lol: We shall see if my idea works out or if I end up with a broken pot in my pond and dirt all over the place
As for them jumping the pot and running all over the place, well, that just won't due. I'll keep an eye on them and if they give me too much trouble then I will show them to the burn pile ;)

Why do you say they aren't good for goldfish/koi ponds Kenny?

Tia

I have trouble with lotus. I still have my first lotus that's 12 years old now but it hasn't bloomed in about 9 years despite repotting every two years in a 7 gallon pot and fertilizing. In fact, last year, I think it had four leaves all year. I've bought other lotus half a dozen times and put them in tub ponds but the deer and raccoons just won't leave them alone so they never live for long. The first year I put lotus in my 50 gallon tub pond, I got one flower I think and tons of tubers the next spring after which the animals kept digging them up, tossing them around, and using them as chew toys. The old lotus is in the middle of my big pond so the animals don't get to it except the fish. I tried a new lotus near there last year without success. I really miss the lotus flowers; they smelled like licorice.

Robyn, what did you pot them up with? I read that cow manure is the best but I worry about having that in the pond. I also read to use some water soluble fertilizer (Osmocote- veggie formula) and not to use tomato spikes.

They say having them out of the pond works well as long as you don't have critters after them :rolleyes: I think you have to have a constant few inches of water on top. That might bring mosquitoes and you would have to make sure they didn't dry out (I'm just guessing here and I don't know, I haven't had one before).

They like rooting.

I'll try to get a shot of the brats rooting in my lotus/lily pot.

Well if they dig in my plants then will get a spanking :lol: :lol: .
I plan on using some larger pebbles to TRY to keep them from rooting plus they will get a very stern lecture before they get put in there!
Tia

This has got me interested in a Lotus plant. I just got a some more wine barrels that are cut in half and was thinking about giving it a try in one of those.

Where did you order your Lotus from, Tia? Did you buy tubers or seeds? I found someplace called Bonnie's online and I think that this is the time of the year to order!

PG

PG, I ordered from this place: http://texaswaterlilies.com/hardywaterlilies.htm. I was able to get in on a group buy. Froggy has some stuff on order from them too. Maybe he has his already. I ordered the Momo Botan and they are tubers. The reason I picked this one is due to it's smaller size. I also have a white one coming that someone divided and was giving away for the price of postage Woo-hoo! I have no clue about that one but I think it will be quite big and probably bigger then I want but what the heck! I'm gonna go for it!!
One thing that I have learned/read so far, is that the soil and container size are very important. Your wine barrels are good size aren't they? They are the same size as whiskey barrels I think. I will see if I can find a link for you about planting and PM that to you :)
This is just my un-expert opinion here, but I would plant it in cow manure compost. That is the best from what I have read. They say to put the fertilizer in the bottom of the container, then the compost. Lotus are very heavy feeders. Oh, you have to handle the tubers like they are a newborn baby also. They say they are very fragile. I hope to put mine in the pond so I'm not sure about using the compost.
I have heard that Bonnies Plants is a good place to order from. I haven't personally ordered from her but I sure wouldn't be afraid to. She has some nice looking fish to boot!
That would be fun if you were to grow one! We could compare notes B) . With all they sun that you have I bet they would grow great!
Tia

I potted my lotus in clay soil from our land. It's low in nitrogen, etc. but I added lots of PondTabbs fertilizer.

I've gotten lotus from AquaMart and Paradise Water Gardens. Tricker also has a large selection.

When I had lotus in tub ponds, there was a few inches of water in there. In the summer, I had to top them off every few days. I added mosquito dunks to prevent mosquitoes.

Healthy, big lotus tubers themselves are hard to break. I had to hack on them with a shovel when repotting. It's the growing tips with the little leaves coming off the tubers that break off even if you look at them funny!

Opps my bad. I should have said the growing tips :rolleyes: Go ahead and give me 40 lashes :lol:

If you have to keep the containers topped off every few days durning the summer then that might throw a wrench in one of my ideas Cryerbaby . I was thinking of planting one outside of the pond in it's own container but with having to water it every few days I just don't know now. Darn!

Who is Tricker? Are they online?
Tia

I've ordered from her. She sends very nice, quality stuff. That's where I get my water lettuce and water hyacinth. She also has a a nice underwater fish cam where you can watch her Koi.

Don

All I can think about is the Spongebob episode where Patrick imagined he had 40 Eye Lashes! LOL

Tricker is an online website... [http://www.tricker.com/]

FINALLY I got off my seat and uploaded the lotus tuber pics :rolleyes:





KK, note the green grass (whispering: lets see if she is paying attention :ph43r: )

OOOOOOHH! That's COLD!!!

Don

Tia, looks like you have banana peels on your really GREEN grass! :lol:

Banana peels was the first thing that came to mind when I saw the pics!

Just checked my email and my lotus shipped out yesterday, and should be here tomorrow or the day after.
Got the Rosie Cloud variety: http://www.bonniesplants.com/lotus/rosy.clouds.html

Now all I have to do is find something to plant them in ... I think that a pan type container is prefered over a pot type container. Probably will be able to find something at the feed store, or hardware store. :)

If I can find my camera, I'll take some more banana-peels-on-the-grass pictures for everybody. ^_^

PG

Got my tuber in the mail today, and opened the box. The wet paper & styrofoam packing looks like it kept it damp and intact. The growing tips look good.


For the time being it will go in the green 16 gallon tub on the left with the lilies. Eventually it will be by itself in the 1/2 wine barrel on the right. The other green tub in the foreground is water that I'm aging for change-outs (there's 4 mosquito fish in with the lilies).


Gratuitous tuber-and-grass pic. :P


Floating with the lily pads.


Tied a string to a rock and then loosely around the tuber to keep it submerged a few inches below the water's surface.


This Friday or Saturday it will be planted and put into the wine barrel.

PG

PG, are you going to use a liner in the barrel? Those green tubs are just about like the ones I just bought to plant mine in. Now I'm having second thoughts.
Looks like Bonnie did a good job of packaging your tubers. I give it two thumbs up :) Did all the growing tips make it or did you have some broken off in the packaging? I think I counted 4 tips?? The tuber looks very healthy.

Now that you have your tuber and your manure your good to go :)
Tia

Yeah, I'm very pleased with the packaging job they did at Bonnie's. There were no broken tuber growing tips whatsoever. :) And just the one day that it has been in water, the tips are already reaching for the surface.

I didn't plan on lining the barrels, although I have seen pictures where some have them that way. The three half barrels that I have filled with water don't seem to be leaking. Which leads me to another question ... Will these former wine barrels be okay for the mosquito fish? I've had them for about three weeks now. Every two or three days I empty them out, spray them with the hose, and refill them. At first it was almost intoxicating standing over the full barrels bucketing the water out. Lately it's not as bad, as I think the red wine coating inside is starting to wear off. There hasn't been any mosquito larvae in any of them, which tells me that the water won't be good for sustaining animal life (currently). Maybe I do need to line them if I want the fish to survive. Anybody have experience with water in wine barrels? :mellow:

PG

I've tried turning water into wine but no luck! :P

:lol: Good one, Froggy :lol:

PG

This is WHY I never look in the plant section! You people with green grass and real pond plants are just sooooo stuck up and pretentious individuals. Lording over your fancy plants and nice green grass, UGH, you people should be so ashamed of yourselves. LOL LOL LOL....The ONLY green thing growing at my place is my jealousy right now :P :P :P

Maybe I'm wrong but I would think you could grow a Lotus in one of those tubs KK? They grow awful fast and are pretty neat even if they don't bloom for you.

I planted my Lotus tuber today.
Not certain if I did it exactly correct ... but it should probably grow.

Here it is suspended in the tub, which it has been in for the last six days. (those are small lily pads above it)


I used a 6 1/2 gallon round feed bucket.
It might be somewhat on the small side, but I'm pretty sure I bought a dwarf variety lotus tuber.
I mixed up some steer compost with the same amount of garden soil.


Put the mixture into the feed bucket (or pan since it's only ~8" deep), then filled it with water and let that soak in.
Skimmed off the remaining water and anything floating.


Placed the tuber in the mud.
The growing tips are at a funny angle because of the way I had it floating/suspended in the tub all week.
The tips began growing in the opposite direction then they had originally started.


Filled in with pea gravel, making sure not to cover the growing tips.


Slowly lowered it into the wine barrel filled with clean (de-chlorinated) water.
Under the tuber's bucket I have two 2" shims to keep the tuber within a few inches of the surface.
I'll remove the shims one at a time as the plant gets bigger ... at least that's the plan for now.


Here it is next to the pond. It should get sun most of the day where it is.
Now I just need some warmer weather!


PG

How much water do you have over the inside pot PG?
How wide is the feed pan/lotus pot?

That looks like a perfect spot for the lotus :) All you need now is a nice lawn chair and one of those fancy drinks with the umbrella.

Thanks for posting the pics too. Nice step by step :)

Tia

Tia,
Just went outside with the tape measure to get the official measurements. I was a little curious, too.
If this lotus thing works out or flops, then I'll have a better idea next time what needs to be done.

The feed pan/lotus pot measures 16.5" diameter (at the top), by 8" deep.
The tuber sits 4.5" below the water's surface.

I don't know about those umbrella drinks ... if you leave the umbrella in while you drink, then it pokes you in the nose or eye.
If you take it out ahead of time, then you've got this frilly little umbrella in your none-drinking hand.
Bottles are better!
:lol:

... glad you liked the pics :)

PG

I would think that would be plenty wide enough for a dwarf. We will see in a few months ;)
:o PG always take the frilly umbrellas out of the drink first. Remember, think safety! You can put them behind your ear like they do with the flowers in Hawaii! B) Be sure to take a pic too :rolleyes:
Tia

These are my lotus planting pics.

The container



The ingredients.


The wheelbarrow.


Step one Fertilizer in.


:o Better hurry!


Step 2 Compost in. Step 3 Tubers in.


Step 4 Pea Gravel in. (Not really necessary but I liked it)


Just another pic for the heck of it :)


Step 9 Add water-don't stir ;) Not as pretty as PG's but we can compare notes now :)

I like the 1/2 barrel you have. I don't see them cut that way around here.
It looks like it has more volume to it ... oh wait, I just did the math in my head. :mellow:
Okay, it has more surface area than a barrel cut they other way.
Is that thick plastic lining the inside? Or EPDM?

Nice wheelbarrow you've got there. Mine only has one wheel. ;)

I see you added fertilizer ... something I forgot when planting my lotus. (thought the compost would be enough)
Wonder if tomato spikes will do the trick.

How far below the surface do you have the tubers?

... please redirect some of the storm clouds South, would you? We need the rain down here!

PG

PG, I lined the barrel with 2 layers of 6 mil. black plastic. I just stapled it to the sides. I might, if I feel like it, put some wood trim over the staples for looks and to help hold the plastic in place. IF the plant actually grows it should hide all that stuff with leaves. I know the plastic won't hold up well with the summer sun. I would have used liner but until I have that darn pond built I wouldn't dare to cut it ;) I have a funny feeling that this container might be a little on the small side :unsure: .

Do you mean how far below the water surface?? The water level was about 3 inches over the tubers. I topped it off yesterday as so now I think there is about 4. I still have a couple of inches left for water if I need it. I didn't add any mosquito repellent stuff and I know I will need it. I thought about adding dunks. What did you do for that??

Composte should be enough to get it going. From what I have read lotus are very heavy feeders and need the extra "kick". The fertilizer that I used is slow release and depends on temperature to activate if I read the label right :blink: . The tomatoe spikes disolve pretty quickly, again from what I have read. I would use them anyway PG. You can always add more when needed.

I would love to share some of my weather with you. I think we have plenty of extra rain ;). You guys down south sure don't get your fair share!

Tia

I haven't had to do anything, yet. I keep finding dead mosquitos and other bugs floating, but so far no mosquito larvae. In one of the three wine barrels I have a few mosquito fish that have been alive and swimming for a week. I do partial water changes for them, and to keep the water clear. I did buy some BT drops, which I thought were dunks. I got them at the feed store in a plastic tub. Opened the tub, and inside was a small sealed dropper bottle. Maybe I'll give it a try this weekend because it's supposed to warm up into the low 80's.

PG

PG, are your sprouts rising above the water yet?

The liner that I used in the barrel has folds in the corners. Wellll seems that the tubers can grow to the corner and get caught in the folds :blink: . That can stop them from growing Cryerbaby . I guess they can grow some and bloom but then they stop :o :huh: .
SO, I did what I did and that's what I did so we will see what happens next :rolleyes:

Here is what mine looked like a couple of days ago.



Not much different. popcorner

Tia

Tia,
Not that much progress so far for mine.
Two of the four growing tips looked like they were going to be the first leaves, now seem as though they are dying.
The trip on the plane or the way I started it out might be the reason it's suffering a bit.
But the two other tips are getting a little longer and pointing upward.

Your container is pretty big so it shouldn't be too much of a problem with the corners.
I read that same thing on the planting instructions.
But I think that the main concern was using a small square planting pot versus a rounded one.
With all that surface area you have the tubers should have a long way to go before getting stuck in a corner.
They should have plenty of room for more growing tips to develop along the way.
... though, I'm just guessing! :unsure:

PG

PG, I thought one of my tips looked kinda peaked too. I thought it might be rotting. I think I may have roughed it up some when I floated it in the bucket. My bad :(

Your probably right about the space. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Tia

OK, guys, I'm just jealous... :P

You have warm weather AND lotus! I don't think summer will ever get here; we can't even get spring!!!

Can't wait to see those flowers! Nice work! :D

Making some progress. This wasn't above the water surface yesterday evening.



PG