Hardy miniature water lily
(Nymphaea tetragona 'Helvola')

More Information on Lilies

Begin getting your hardy water lilies ready for winter by removing all dead and dying foliage. If the pond freezes solid in your climate or is drained for the winter, remove the lily, pot and all. Store the entire pot by keeping it cool and moist in a plastic bag. If you can't store the whole pot, remove and clean the growing tuber and store it in peat moss at 40 to 50 degrees F.

If the pond doesn't freeze solid, don't remove the pot. Simply lower it to the deepest part of the pond, where water will not freeze.

In spring, bring the pot back to the proper growing level in the pond. If you've dug up and stored the tuber, repot as if it were a new plant.

 

Keep your pond clean and beautiful
like this one.

• Don't overfertilize plants; you'll feed the algae that turn pond water green.
• Don't overfeed the fish or have too many fish for the size of the pond.
• Remove decaying vegetation.
• Make sure 60 percent of the pond is shaded by lily pads or other plants.
• Keep water well-oxygenated with aerators, fountains, or waterfalls.
• Don't kill algae with chemical treatments; that will hurt plants, fish, and beneficial bacteria that live in the pond.

• Local water-garden-society sales
• Mail-order catalogs
• Other gardeners; lilies are easy to divide and propagate for trading