Fringed water lily

Fringed water lily: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Floating-leaved plant with long runners that creep across the water and root at the nodes; a single plant soon spreads to 1.5 m.

Leaves

Round to heart-shaped, 3–10 cm, glossy green with purplish-brown mottling.

Flowers

Five golden yellow petals with a fine fringed edge, 3–4 cm across, on short stalks just above the water, from July to September.

Roots

Rhizomes in the mud; new plantlets form on the runners.

Planting depth

Shallow to deeper water, 20–60 cm above the soil in the basket.

Flowering: July–September · Plants: May–June · Pruning: June–September

Why grow it?

• Golden yellow, fringed flowers from July to September, when many other pond plants have finished.
• Quick cover: the floating leaves cast shade and hold back algae.
• Bees and hoverflies visit the flowers.
• Native: frogs like to sit on the leaves, and dragonflies and damselflies use them as resting places.
• Also grows in somewhat deeper water, down to 60 cm.

Fringed water lily: where does it grow best?

• Full sun: that is where it flowers best.
• Still or slow-moving water, neutral to lime-rich.
• Planting depth 20–60 cm, in an aquatic basket of heavy loam or clay.
• Best in a large pond where it has room; in a small pond, always in a basket.
• Allow 1.5 m of spread per plant, and do not let it cover more than a third of the water.

Light

Sun

Soil type

Loam, clay or peat

Acidity

Neutral or chalky

Moisture

Wet

Size

0.05 m tall, 1.5 m wide

Hardiness

Hardy (to -25 °C)

Goes well with

• Spiked water-milfoil: An underwater oxygenator, in the same lime-rich water.
• Mare’s-tail: Straight stems as a contrast to the round floating leaves.
• Flowering rush: Pink flower heads at the edge.
• Arrowhead: Arrow-shaped leaves in the shallow zone.

Fringed water lily: when and how to plant it?

Plant in May–June.

1. Plant in May or June, once the water has warmed up.
2. Fill an aquatic basket with heavy garden soil or clay, without potting compost or fertiliser.
3. Push the rhizome or rooted plantlet 3–5 cm deep and firm it in.
4. Top with gravel so fish do not dig up the soil.
5. Stand the basket a little shallower at first and lower it to 20–60 cm once the leaves are floating.
6. One plant is enough for an ordinary garden pond: it fills out quickly.

Care

Runners

From June to August, regularly pull or cut off runners that grow outside the area you want.

Cover

Keep at least two thirds of the water clear so the oxygenators get light.

Feeding

Never: it is vigorous already and extra nutrients feed algae.

Yellow leaves

Regularly cut off yellow leaves and spent flower stalks.

Repotting

Every two or three years in May, lift the basket, divide the plant and replant in fresh soil.

Tip: Plant it in a sturdy basket and pull off the runners every summer: that way you enjoy the flowers without it taking over the whole pond.

Fringed water lily: when to prune it?

Pruning months: June–September.

When: From June to September, thin out regularly, pull off runners and cut away yellow leaves; otherwise it is not pruned.

How:

• Pull off runners carrying new plantlets, or cut them off at the rim of the basket.
• Rake or pull out some of the floating leaves if it covers more than a third of the water.
• Cut yellow leaves off as close to the base as possible.
• Leave removed material on the bank for a day so small creatures can return to the pond.

Caution: Remove every runner that roots outside the basket: even a small piece will grow again.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Runners

From June to August, snip off a rooted plantlet from a runner and plant it in a new basket.

Division

In May, cut the rhizome into pieces, each with a few leaves, and plant them separately.

Fringed water lily: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −25 °C.

• Hardy to about −25 °C: the rhizome overwinters in the mud.
• The floating leaves die back in autumn; net them out of the water so they do not rot on the bottom.
• No protection needed as long as the basket sits below the ice.

Diseases and pests

• Spreading: In a small pond it covers the whole surface within a season. Keep it in a basket and thin out regularly.
• Water lily aphid: Dark aphids on leaves and flowers. Hose them into the pond, where fish and other creatures eat them.
• Water lily beetle: Small beetles and larvae eat the leaves. Cut off affected leaves.
• Few flowers: Too much shade or too many leaves. Move it into more sun and thin it out.

Through the year

• April: New leaves develop.
• May: Plant, or repot and divide.
• June: Plant. Pull off runners.
• July: Flowering begins. Thin out if more than a third is covered.
• August: In flower. Pull off runners.
• September: Last flowers. Cut off yellow leaves.
• October: Net dead leaves out of the water.
• December: Resting: the rhizome lies in the mud.

Good for wildlife

Bees

Nectar and pollen for honeybees and wild bees.

Did you know?

• Despite its Dutch name, ‘water gentian’, it is related neither to gentians nor to water lilies: it belongs to the bogbean family.
• Each flower opens for just one day. There are two flower forms, with a long or a short style, which encourages cross-pollination between plants.
• Its flat seeds can float and are spread by water and by waterbirds.