1st time tropical lily owner - question....

[Lynne22]

Ok, this is the first tropical I have owned, and I'm wondering something about the pads. All of the pads on this- Bob Trickett, have water on top of them in some form, whether it's in the ruffled edge, or in the center. I am concerned that the constant water sitting on them will make them deteriorate faster than normal. Is this normal for all of the pads to do this? This lily has 3 buds on it, which should be up over the next week, but the pads are paper thin, and about 10", but when it rains, the get submerged, and don't come back up for several hours, sometimes more and maybe not even the same day....should the pads be thicker at this point? It's been potted up since Memorial weekend.

Photo-hopefully....

[greenthumbnails]

I see this on some of my tropicals too. It does not seem to cause any problems on my end. If anything the dragonflies like this little puddle and lay their eggs in it. I saw this happening in person for the first time recently. The tropical lily pads can be very thin when in comparison to hardy lily pads, especially if they are new or juvenile pads. Don't know the answer to your "submerged" question though as I've never really gone out there after a rain to check on the pads. ( I have too many pads from tropicals sharing the same space, so I doubt that I'd notice anyways.  )

Maybe someone else may have an answer?

[Lynne22]

Hey greenthumbnails, thanks for the input. The only reason I know about the pads submerged is, the pond is on my patio and in direct line of sight from the living room slider. Plus I have to walk by it to leave the house. Yes, compared to the hardy-which I am use to, their pads are much thinner. Who knows, maybe they will get stronger as the plant becomes more established. I know I can't wait to see those blooms!    It would be pretty amazing to see a dragonfly do that, but alas, my patio is fully screened, so I won't be that lucky. This pond isn't that big, so I'm sure soon I will have pads stacked as well. 

[Lynne22]

Ok, I know there are people out there that have tropicals, I'm just asking for others experience about them...input please....thanks in advance.

[miguynmkoi]

I thought I chimed in yesterday...but obviously not!    Any whooo.   

I usually receive beautiful large blooming size bareroot lilies I buy from our Kat.  After potting them and lowering them into my lily pond the stems of the pads are not long enough to let the pads float.  The surface of the potted dirt is about 20" from the water level.  Fully grown pads that were submerged took about 5-7 days to reach the water surface before they lay flat.  Most of the times the flower buds bolted up even faster before blooming.  Never had a problem.

Over the past 2+ years I've been swishing water over my pads to wash off (tiny bad) bugs or overhead tree debris with no problem.

Hope this helps.

[magoo]

From the look of those pads, you have a healthy happy waterlily. Waterlilies evolved in areas where the water levels fluctuate extremly. Water level drops, the lily forms tuber for when the water rises again. Water levels go up, the pads grow to the surface. Please post a photo when your lily blooms.

[matherfish]

Magoo is right. The pads will grow to the top of the surface when additional water covers the pads. The water on them will not hurt them.

[Lynne22]

Thanks everyone, I feel better.  I have avoided buying a tropical, because I felt they were more...delicate than hardies, but maybe not? The hardies always endure anything the weather throws at them, and bounce right back. I'll just have to get to know to the tropical habits better. But I can't wait for it to bloom!!  I'll post pictures.