Pond Boss Forums AQUATIC VEGETATION Identifying plants Any species of dwarf lily pads a bad idea?

Ok so I have been looking at lily pads to put in my pond for over a month now and just never have pulled the trigger on ordering them. So last night while getting the mail one of my neighbors yells at me to bring my dog over. They had picked up a frisbee as they had noticed he hadnt been packing one around while he follows me on the lawnmower this year. Jake lives to play frisbee or fetch anything really, to bad he is horribly gun shy would have been a hell of a duck dog. Anyhow back on subject while talking to them I noticed they had a small goldfish pond that I had never noticed before and have three different types of dwarf water lilys in it. A white, yellow, and pink so I asked where she had bought them and she didnt remember as she had them for years. Said if I wanted some of them to come take what I wanted. So is this a cheap way to get some dwarf lilys in my pond or a cheap way to set myself up for disaster??? None of the pads looked to be over 6" in diameter. If I need to be cautious of these what should I look for?

Thanks for any help guys,
Matt

You could always plant them in pots so they are contained.

Potting the plants is always a good idea for the first year so make sure there are not piggy back unwanted plants growing in the pot or pans. After the first year you can transplant the plants directly into the pond. If the lily varieties are truly dwarf versions they will not grow deeper than 4ft and spread slowly the next 10 years. Larger variteties will spread deeper that 3-4ft depending on variety. Hybrid lilies are easily controlled with the correct aquatic herbicide.

So sounds like this is pretty low risk as long as I put them in something to contain the roots for the first year.

What is the best way to go about harvesting my starts?

Being careful of the neighbor's plant, break off a piece of tuber with leaves on it.

For lily transplant, It is best to break off a 4"-8" section of root (rhizome) with a flower stem attached. Flowers emerge from the growing root tips.

Note that I mistakenly called the underground stem on water lilies a tuber, while Bill correctly called it a rhizome.