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Planting And Propagation |
Established plants will sometimes need replanting after a
few years. This may be because of overcrowding or poor
growth as a result of starvation. A crowded surface can be
avoided by regularly thinning out the top growth throughout
the summer months. Old flower heads should be removed, for
the aquatics seed very freely and left unchecked, the young
plants would soon be too numerous. In some cases, too, por-
tions of plants break away and are liable to root. Whenever a
pool is being emptied, submerged plants must at once be
transferred to another temporary receptacle of water, but lilies
and the normal rooting aquatics can be left in the soil, prefer-
ably covered with leaves or something similar until they can
be divided, as necessary. When this is done, each portion re-
planted should be strong and healthy and no weak, spindly
growth retained. Water-lily tubers should be cut so that each
new plant has a good strong crown. At replanting time it is
a good plan when putting in the portions, either to put down a
good layer of rich compost or to make the holes big enough for
good compost to be added and into this plant the new portions.
It is important to remove decayed leaves, twigs and rubbish
which may have settled on the surface of the pool -an ordinary
small mesh fish net is suitable for this job. Any of the not
fully hardy water-lilies or other plants which are kept outside
during the summer, must be taken indoors towards the end of
September. Any plants growing in boggy ground and which
are known not to be winter hardy or at least liable to be
damaged, should be given the protection of evergreen boughs
or straw during spells of severe weather.
One final word regarding the planting of water-lilies. Depth
of planting is most important and when in doubt the specialist
growers should be consulted, as they should for information
regarding the possible surface spread of the plants. For
instance, while the small growing lilies such as N. pygmaea
alba and some laydekeri varieties will be happy covered with
four to ten inches of water, others need nine to eighteen inches,
yet others are very successful where the water is 18 to 24 inches,
while some thrive where the depth is up to three feet.
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