What is a good water lily for my barrel pond?

[Spindrift]

Hi everyone,

I have a barrel pond and want to put a nice hardy water lily in there.  I live on the California coast, and the weather here is mild and fairly consistent.  Summers don't get very hot, and winters don't get very cold either.  I have my pond in a sunny location, and would like something beautiful that will bloom as much as possible.  Does anyone have any good recommendations?

[JoshS]

Helvola is a blooming fool, once it gets established.  Small, easy to find, and easy to grow.

[matherfish]

Helvola is a great dwarf hardy lily. I grow almost all of my lilies in half barrel ponds, and I have over 300 of them of all sizes and colors. The smaller varieties do better, but all of them can be grown in a half barrel. 

[Mikey]

I too suggest Helvola, a bright yellow flower often held above the water much like a tropical and it likes to show off.  Should you wish to try a blue tropical I would suggest Tina.

Unrelated......  I notice you live Pacific Grove.  For those not familiar with California, Pacific Grove is a wonderful scenic community located up north just below Monterey and up the road from Carmel.  Our last visit to the area we stayed in a wonderful bed & breakfast there and will make sure we do so again on our next visit.

[karen J]

Mikey, that was a really nice tidbit & photo.

Unrelated... I once visited my brother in Monterrey when he was going to the Naval postgraduate school. I loved it there. I had pie and coffee at a cute little place in Carmel, I lost my sunglasses at Pebble Beach, and I hit a rock that was jutting out into the roadway and did 1,600.00 worth of damage to my brother's car. 

Anyway, Here is what Helvola looks like. It's color is actually a little bit more yellow than the photo shows.



Excuse the little plastic boat, this one shows the pretty mottled pads of Helvola

[Spindrift]

Thank you for your comments.
 
Ok, so a lot of votes on Helvola.  I will have to give it a try. 

Any other suggestions?  I have another container - a little smaller than a half barrel, that I would also like to plant a lily in.  It will get full sun but also shade in the earlier part of the day.  What about a nice red or pink one, for a small area?

Yes, Pacific Grove is a wonderful place to live.  I love it here!  There is so much charm and natural beauty everywhere.

[matherfish]

Put the Helvola in the smaller container, and any other plant in the half barrel. Helvela is a dwarf lily. Laydnki Lilacea is also a small lily, as is Perry's baby Red.

[tranquility]

While not a very brightly colored lily--Walter Pagels a white small spread lily is my very best bloomer and it is just the perfect size for a barrel...Helvola is a darling little lily too....You can't go wrong with either...
Lawanna

[PondmaninAL]

I don't remember who I got my first Helvola from but it has bloomed like crazy these last two years. I'm trying out a few other dwarfs this year in a dwarf pond. One is peach and the other is a changeable. I also have a white one that Sue sent me.I'm planning on starting N. minuta again this year which is a dwarf pink tropical.

[Desertponder]

Paul Hariot. Its a great bloomer and lives in a half barrel by my front door in the summer.

http://www.victoria-adventure.org/waterlilies/hardy_galleries/paul_harriot.html

A pic of mine.

[Spindrift]

That is really pretty....

As I have been looking at a lot of pond plants the past few days it's making me a little crazy - making me want to have more ponds just so I can try out all the different plants!

[PondmaninAL]

Ponding is addictive and gets bigger and spreads and before you know it, you have Lake Michigan in your back yard.