Over
Wintering Water Lotus
Lotus tubers need to be protected from freezing during the winter. They need to
be moved to deeper water, where they cannot freeze. If you cannot move them to
deeper water you must store the tuber in a place where they will not freeze.
Gently wash the tuber off after it has died down for the winter, and treat it
with a fungicide. Then place it in moist kitty litter in a bag or container,
making sure not to damage or break the growing tip. Place it in a cool location
for the winter. Repot it in the spring. Divide at least every 2 years before the
tuber comes out of hibernation.
Over wintering Tropical Water Lilies
As winter nears, you should stop fertilizing your tropical lilies. This will
help slow their growth and prepare them for over wintering as tubers. After your
first light frost or two, (I know it will be cold!) pull the pot out of the
water. Feel around in the soil and find all of the hard nut-like tubers, called
corms. You will find them just below the crown of the plant. They will normally
range from the size of a pea to the size of a golf ball, but may be larger. Take
all of the tubers out of the soil and rinse them thoroughly with a strong jet of
water. Trim off any remnants of roots or stems from the tuber. I roll my corms
in Captan, a fungicide. I store them in plastic bags. They must be stored in
damp (not wet) peat, sphagnum moss, or sand. The temperature must stay above 50
degrees Fahrenheit. Replant in the spring when the water temps allow planting,
usually above 70 degrees.
Another way to over winter tropical lilies...
Is to keep them in tubs that can be
kept warm and get at least 4 hours a day of sunshine. Last winter I had plants
in tubs in the greenhouse that did well this spring. The temperature in the
greenhouse was kept above 45 degrees at night.
Frank Matherley
