The Water Lily is also called Water Hyacinth, Trauma, Bora, Camelot’s, Agapes, Lampasas and its scientific name is Eichhornia crosses, this is a plant that is aquatic and belongs to the family called Pontederiaceae, it is very common in ponds, rivers and Caribbean lakes and the Tropics of America, although it can also be found in Africa and Europe as it is marketed as an ornamental plant. It is important to clarify that this aquatic plant is considered one of the most invasive in the world, since it grows and multiplies rapidly, in fact there are expensive projects to control its spread, because the plant has caused the loss of some crops such as the rice one Even so, it is a beautiful plant that can give a lot of life to our water garden. Continue reading Water lilies: Care and cultivation.
Water lilies
Water lilies are widely used in some parts as an ornamental plant since they have beautiful flowers, which are inflorescences in clusters, that is, in spikes, it is pisiform and its flowers will be between 4 and 16, its color is between blue and purple with other white tones, on the other hand the upper petal contains a yellow spot which is surrounded by several purple lines.
One of the great characteristics of this species is that it has a voluminous root system that manages to sprout out of the water on many occasions. Leaves originate from their rhizome together, which are located in rosettes that are vertical, some of these are submerged, the stems of the water lilies are not visible, sometimes quite short ones are observed. The leaves contain a petiole that is evident and its color is dark green, and the shape is rounded and folded, the leaves that are submerged are more regular. The plant floats due to its leaves, since they have a tissue called parenchyma which is known as parenchyma, which contains several cavities where air is retained, in this way the lilies float.
The water lilies in your pond
These lilies form spheres that are dense on top of ponds, thus providing food and shelter for insects and fish. Water lilies will reproduce quickly, you must ensure that when they spread they only cover a third of your lake or pond, this would be the point to not consider them invasive and thus they will provide a good habitat for fish and will be enough to maintain the water freer of debris (which fish make) and algae. On the contrary, having many water lilies will prevent other plants from surviving, since competition with the lilies is difficult.
If you see that the lilies are invading the place, use a special skimmer for tanks and remove the excess that may be of these plants.
Spread all the plants that you are going to discard in a place that gets a lot of sun so that they dry out and become organic compost, this is to be more careful not to accidentally carry them into native rivers.
Source
This plant has its origin in South America, exactly in the rivers of the tropics, especially in the Amazon basins; there it is considered a medicinal plant.
Cultivation of water lilies
Special care must be taken with this since they are on the list of the hundred most invasive plants known to date, so there must be a lot of responsibility in their cultivation, these lilies can quickly cover habitats aquatic type and even seriously damage ecosystems. If you are attracted by its beauty and you really want to grow this plant in your lake or pond and you will do responsible care, keep reading the tips that we will give below.
It should get full sun, it floats freely in calm and calm waters, it is very sensitive to frost and cold, in order to flower it needs quite sunny and warm summers, in cold regions it will not survive the winter.
Cultivation
This plant is used in aquatic gardens and ponds as an ornamental floating plant, it is also perennial. It has fairly dense foliage that can prevent algae from growing and keep the water clearer; its roots can be a haven for fish.
You must start by choosing a plant to start your cultivation, for this you must go to someone who grows this type of plants and has a good reputation or to a nursery.
The lighting
The best thing for this plant is to give them full sun; therefore if the place where you want them is in a fairly shady place, you should put artificial light extensively.
Temperature
These lilies will not withstand frosts below zero degrees Celsius, if this happens their development will be limited or they may even die. It is important that they can have their growth in climates that are warm, where temperatures can hardly be below ten degrees Celsius. In strong winters they must be transferred in containers to greenhouses in order to protect them. The optimal temperature for its good growth, its multiplication and of course it’s flowering must be between fifteen and thirty degrees centigrade.
Water
Although it is an aquatic plant, it is not good for it to be in strong water currents that are generated by some source; on the contrary, the plant needs to grow in calm waters.
Prune
Instead of pruning we should call it control, so that there is no overpopulation, so if it reproduces excessively, the remaining plants should be removed and then thrown away, never in other waters or sewers. The plants themselves will not need to be pruned, just remove the damaged or dead ones.
You should always remove any plants that you see that are decaying, as the water lilies will become slimy and could become problems with the water and filters in the pond.
The multiplication
This plant multiplies very quickly and does so in the following way: through plants that are daughters, which originated from the rhizomes of the mother plants. Remember that you have to be careful since they do it quite quickly and if they completely cover the pond or lake, they could kill the living organisms that exist there, such as other plants or fish. On the contrary, if well controlled, they can be purifying, contributing to the quality and clarity of the water, since they limit the growth of algae and eliminate organic matter.
With heat and sun then, this plant will have no problem reproducing, because as we have already mentioned several times, it is an invasive plant, it can multiply by division or by seed.
If the plants grow very large, the so-called daughter plants can be separated from the so-called mother plants, for this it will be necessary to cut the stolon’s that can be seen between each plant.
Issues
This plant does not suffer from significant diseases or pests, it can reproduce so quickly that it is therefore capable of becoming invasive, and can even block pipes and watercourses, which even causes economic losses.
Caution
In case they multiply a lot, it is important to remove the remaining plants and then proceed to eliminate them. They should NOT be thrown into lagoons, nearby rivers or other water sources.
Important
Since 2013, in Spain it has been prohibited to introduce it into the natural environment, as well as its possession, traffic, transport and its trade in both dead and living plants.
On the other hand, in other countries, because the plant has purifying characteristics and facilitates propagation, they are using it as a phytoremediation, that is, as a decontaminant of water and soil.
Tips for care and cultivation
- The cultivation of this plant should only be done by responsible people who also protect the environment a lot.
- Although it is a very beautiful plant, you have to think carefully about its cultivation, because although it is quite easy, this plant has negative effects on the environment.
- If the plant turns yellow in the summer it will be a sign that it needs nutrients, for this look for an organic fertilizer, apply it for a period of two weeks or until you see that the leaves turn green again.
- Due to the fact that this plant is causing great economic losses throughout the world, it is not advised that private individuals use it, in order to avoid its further spread.
- Water predators or other chemical products should not be used to proceed to eliminate the heaviest metals from the water, in this way the plants would be damaged, add your lilies and the algae will begin to die since they will lack nutrients and light of the sun .
- In addition to Spain, there are other countries where it is prohibited, so find out if this is the case for yours.
