water lillies in ponds

[exasperatus2002]

I bought one of those water lilies at home depot going on 3 yrs ago. It still has small leaves & despite being in full sun, has yet to bloom. When do they usually bloom? I used to just use a wild lily from the lake but now that I have moved & didnt take it with me, I tried to use a colorful one (red). This will be my 3rd year in my new house and I see young leaves starting to come up already. I just have a few feeder goldfish in the pond & they've spawned every year for me. I dont add supplemental fertilizer beyond what the fish provide for it. I clean the pond out twice a year. early spring & Fall. I live in PA, growing zone 6.

[joe_jaskot]

If there are not enough nutrients in the pond, lilies need fertilizer in order to bloom. Fertilizer should be added every 2-3 weeks. Lilies will not bloom until the water temperature reaches 70 degrees. There are day blooming lilies and night blooming lilies. Night blooming lilies, only bloom at night and the flowers only last a short period of time.

[Zippo]

I have the hardy variety of water lily and never fertilize them. They bloom like mad all summer. Guess i have lotsa nutrients in there from the fish/frogs. :becky:

[Buckcich]

Water lillies are heavy feeders. Fertilize if grown in a container. In earthen ponds they get their nutrients directly from the dirt and wildlife. Make sure they get 8 hrs of sunlight, either tropicals (typical night blommers) or hardy (typical day blommers)

[Tony]

Dang. Between this thread and the outdoor cichlid thread, I'm pretty impressed by all this pond knowledge coming from ECC members. :thumb: