The message
from Chris Hogg contains these words:

On Fri, 21 Apr 2006 22:59:37 +0100, "Bob Hobden"
wrote:


I suspect these poor plants have been kept in plastic bags for some while
and have started to ferment, always a problem with water plants in plastic
bags. Most water lilies should only just be in growth now so if they have
floating leaves they have been forced or are from a hotter climate abroad.
It's why it's always better to go to a proper water garden or water plant
specialist to by your plants fresh, and you also get better plants, better
varieties and more variety too. (I do not mean those separate bits in
Garden
Centres!) The test is, are the varieties named? Or just sold as
white, red,
pink and yellow?

You will have a waterlilly for life so why get something cheap and
ordinary,
pay a good price and get something special. Look at the selection on
http://www.lilieswatergardens.co.uk/...e.asp?cat=A-2B and they have a
great deal more if you visit, like "Peach Glow" and the best yellow
there is
"Joey Tomocick".

They were in plastic bags, as you say, but wrapped in damp moss and
with no leaves. They are just now beginning to put out young shoots.
I'm sure your advice is sound, if unwelcome. At that price I wasn't
expecting top quality plants. They were named varieties, BTW: N. alba,
N. Odorata Sulphurea and N. Amabilis.

But you didn't answer my question. Is the fungus harmful, and if so,
what should I do about it?


Not an answer to your question but just to mention I had N. alba in
quite a large pond (20' by 10'?) but after about four years decided to
get rid of it as it was too ramapant. The process of getting it out of
the pond was quite interesting. It involved my son lying on his stomach
on a plank and with various assistants to hand hacking chunks off with a
saw until it was possible to drag and then pull out the central crown.
It was an exhausting and very sludgy few hours.
Janet G