Pond Boss Forums AQUATIC VEGETATION Balance of plants in the environment Starting Water Lillies in an old gravel pit

hello- could someone give me the names of some water liles to grow in 2.5 acre pond that are not to invasive, pond is fairly shallow around the edges , or another plant that would be good for fish cover, i do have grass carp . pond is in east texas, Thanks Harvey

Hmmmn it's easier to state names of water lily names and types to steer clear of, as too prolific at seeding over a wide area and those with quite fast growing scrambling rhisome habits....

The large Nuphar luteas (brandy bottle), the hardier native lotus, native alba's, native odoratas are likely to go berserk when they have conditions they like.

The hybrid water lilies (maybe 400 plus varieties) tend to be steady growers, while you need some robust size and strength to cope with native conditions, clusters of a dozen or so crowns of those should be quite easy to keep tidy, needing one paddling session a year to tidy them up when they get going. Take care to plant them at a depth which is pleasant to paddle in during warm waters...

Regards, andy

One of the better sites I've found relating to waterlily propagation is http://www.victoria-adventure.org/waterlilies/cultivation.html
Northern growers will be particularly interested in the Sean Stevens link. Enjoy.
Regards,

Thanks Dudley,

I checked that site out, very nice. Lots of info there, makes me wish I had a printer hooked up. : )

Here's another one for you, Pottsy.
www.ewaterlily.com
A printer would be a good addition to your Christmas list unless, like the great majority of us, you're Santa.

I recently put sterile grass carp into my lake to control white water buttercup (crowfoot) Ranunculus longirostris. Does anyone know if these grass carp are particularily fond of eating my hybrid water lilies? I can easily control the numbers of grass carp but if they eat my water lilies first, I'll have to protect them.

Norm - Once the preferred plants are all consumed by the grass carp and these fish are greater than 28" they will discover they prefer the flowers of the fragrent water lilies. You willnotice the flowers do not last as long as they once did. Each flower lasts about a day when amur have discovered them. Also the amur will consume many of the newly emerging tender shoots of the lilies in spring as the lilies send the new pads to the surface. Degree of lily foraging will be dependant of how many amur are present and amount of other available, palatable vegetation.

Thanks Bill--that's what I was afraid of. I guess that I had better start making wire cages to protect my water lilies unless you have a better idea.

Another lily protecting option that I have found to sometimes work is to place tree brush around the shallower lilies. Dense twigs spread around the crowns and leaf perimeter can discourage amur from grazing the shoods and flowers.