It is four of my second grade un-named waterlilies that didn't make the final cut but are still great waterlilies.
They are waterlilies that have been in my collection for years because I can't bring myself to feed them to the horses.
Eventually though something has to give to make room for new varieties, including hardy blue and purple waterlilies, here on the farm. Which plants make the final cut and which don't is quite subjective and is a matter of personal preference as much as quantifiable traits. By the time a plant is considered a contender for naming and registration and sales it has been selected as superior to similar plants in my collection at least two times. In other words I start with the run of the mill seedlings and I select what are the best and unusual high quality seedlings and plant them in a testing area for further evaluation. That is the first selection. After they mature and show their full potential and I get to know them I then select a few of the best of their types and continue to grow them for another year so I can evaluate them from spring through fall as full size plants. That is the second selection. Next, again I select the best of those for their type and I plant them by themselves and let them make a crowded bed of plants of one variety to see how they grow over time in crowded conditions and make sure they are stable and really get to know them. That is the third selection and I call them contenders for naming. From these I make the final selections for naming from the cream of the crop. Anything that makes it to contender is a great waterlily without a doubt but if there is something similar but just slightly better in my subjective view then It gets named and the rest of the similar contenders of its type get one last chance at reprieve from being fed to the horses and that is if they are "just to pretty" to kill ! I keep these plants for my enjoyment as long as I can until I absolutely need the room for new contenders. Many of these contenders grow on me over time and I end up keeping them even if I don't name them for sales etc. As a breeder I get to enjoy the subtle differences between waterlilies that retail purchasers never get to enjoy because the market can't handle similar named plants without confusion and difficulties with describing subtle differences. Frankly, the average waterlily purchaser is barley beyond thinking about whether they want a red or a yellow one, much less about subtle differences between different reds or yellows. But not all waterlily purchasers are average and some of us LOVE subtle differences from what is commonly available as long as the plant is top quality. I am able to enjoy them myself, so why not you too. So I sell them, hoping they won't go extinct and someone is enjoying them.
I have different colors and types and If you want 4 different yellows I can do that. Or if you want 4 different pink and yellows I can do that. Or if you want a pink, a yellow, a pink and yellow, and dark pink I can do that. Tell me what colors you want and I will choose the plant or I can post Pix and you can choose. However you want.
