Pond Boss Forums AQUATIC VEGETATION Identifying plants Trying Tropical Lilies to Overwinter in Freezing

I am not thinking liberal has anything to do with it. To me it is more or less the America we live in today. A litigious society. Where the brightest minds in private universities are encouraged to sue the government, sue everyone and just find frivelous lawsuits to actually hinder productivity. Class action lawsuits, malpractice suits, even suits protecting the rights of red legged frogs and fairy shrimp.

The second part is most assuredly CA Fish and Game. An agency that ran fine when it was not required to manage anything. But when that changed, it's total ineptness was shown. They stood by and watched an entire estuary become almost extinct. Closed an entire salmon fishery. Closed an entire rockfish business. Blew through millions on one dink lake eradicating one species. Pretty much destroyed anything that was worth fishing for publicly. Now, they are trying to finish the deal on the private end of it.

Which brings us back to the topic. Tropical water lilies. Without hatcheries supplying me fish to stock at a reasonable price I can barely work that segment of my business. Then new pond owners being subject to CA F and G authorization just to plant thier ponds will pretty much end most of the new business. So what is left is stocking already established ponds with overpriced fish. That won't pay for the gas in my truck.

It's a shift over to aquatic plants. Fighting invasive species, providing aquatic landscaping and hopefully expanding the water lily market. That is pretty much all that is left. Luckily I am on the tail end of my career. But where fish are pretty much go or no go in my area, trout and tilipia both die off, I can push the limits on lilies. And although they are for sale at many places, very few individuals take it to the extreme I do planting them. And unlike sticking a tomato plant in the ground and watching it grow, lilies require a lot of experience or expertise, or they just don't work.

I have another job coming up where the guy tried really hard to get them going and just did not get the desired results. Most of my jobs are like that. I get to clean up messes or get it right. Not only do I get desired results but I get to educate customers and support them long term. People generally make a pond, throw some fish in and say let's fish. But when they look at it, something is missing. Aquatic vegetation. You rarely see the fish, they are underwater except when you feed them. But plants are always there. And they can bloom, add color and make the entire pond eye pleasing. But they don't want to work hard after the plants are in.

I need to find out as many tropical lilies as I can to add colors and better flowering duirng peak seasons. Plants that can overwinter, that can be planted directly in the ground and not be taken out. No customer is going to do that. And to expect them to would be foolish on my part. I know after time the plants begin to adjsut as much as genetic limiters allow. They do acclimate. Their offspring are better than the parents. The plants that don't overwinter don't pass on thier genes. It isn't rocket science but it is life science. Plants are very adaptable. That is the whole focus of this. Trying to adapt 5-6 different color, different types to work in my locale. I'll keep journals, careful records and keep trying. The upside is huge. The downside, I lose a few plants. Nothing new there, you just keep experimenting.