Scientific name: Nymphaea spp. & cvs.
Family: NYMPHACEAE
Common names: “Water lily” “lotus”
Plant Type: Aquatic perennial
Conditions:
Zone: 3 – 12
Light: Full sun best – part shade
Exposure: Sheltered
Soil: Loamy clay
Moisture: Submerged in still or slow moving water
Aesthetic:
Plant Size: H & W 3-8′
Leaf and Stem shape: Floating, rounded leaves
Flower: White flowers with prominent yellow stamens, becoming star-shaped with maturity
Maintenance: Low, in large 5-10 gallon pots bury the rhizomes with soil and fill the top of the pot with pea gravel
Landscape use: Ponds, lake edges, aquariums
Propagate: By seed, rhizome division and offset
Pests & Disease: Aphids chew the leaf and attract wasps
Comments: Mature roots are edible when cooked, mostly starch with some protein, but said to contain some toxic chemicals which may affect the nervous system, plants are self fertile
Species: N. alba – “European white water lily”
N. odorata – “American white water lily” – fragrant and large
N. caerulea – “Egyptian blue lotus”
N. rubra – “Dwarf lily”
N. nouchali – “Blue lotus”
Cultivars: ~AGM winners: N. ‘Marliacea Chromatella’ , N. ‘Gladstoniana’ , N. ‘Pygmaea Helvola’ , N. ‘Gonnère’ , N. ‘James Brydon’
Vancouver Island Grows 