The EZ Guide to Building a Koi Pond by Bob Long

Author:Bob Long [Long, Bob]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: Bonjour Limited Holdings LLC
Published: 2012-03-12T04:00:00+00:00

Water Lilies

Figure 16: Fire Opal Water Lily

These are magnificent pond plants with rich colors and delicate blossoms. There are two types of water lilies – Tropical and Hardy. Living in a cold weather location I have only planted hardy water lilies. I could also plant Tropical Water Lilies and remove them from the pond during the winter. While the tropical lilies are even more beautiful than their hardy siblings and some even bloom at night, I decided it is not worth the extra work involved in removing and replanting these lilies. If we ever live in a warm weather location again, I will definitely plant tropical lilies. In the current pond, I planted 5 water lilies of different colors in pots ($25-$35 ea.) with the soil covered with rock. These water lilies have grown and spread and one has even magically managed to escape the pot and root itself into the rocks at the bottom of the pond. Each year the lilies can be divided creating more plants for the pond. In the height of summer I like the water lilies to cover at least 50% of the surface area of the pond. There is some work involved in maintaining these plants. I fertilize them three times (spring, and mid and late summer) a year pushing tabs that can be purchased at any online store that sells pond supplies. In the fall I have to trim them back and move them into deeper water that is below the freeze line. In the spring I move them back into water that is 1 to 2 feet deep. The trimming back in the fall involves the biggest effort but in total I spend a couple of hours per year maintaining these plants which it well worth it. In addition to their beauty, the water lily pads add cover for the koi and provide a nice platform for the frogs to hang out on.

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