"Phyllis and Jim" wrote:

Our lilies have jumped the pots and as THRIVING on the pond floor. In
fact, they do better there than in the pots. But they are not
flowering a whole lot. Any ideas about fertilizing them? Or
otherwise makeing them bloom?

I had this problem. I had one water lily that in about 30 years had
taken over our entire pond which is about 15' x 45'. A couple years ago
in the fall I took the entire lily tuber out. I broke it into healthy
sections about 8" to 12" long with crowns. Much had to be thrown away
because it had soft spots. I then planted 12 pieces in pots and am
tending them to keep them in the pots. I will add the once-a-year
fertilizer spikes in May. They are doing very well in pots and are
blooming their heads off.
--
Pardon my spam deterrent; send email to
18,000 gallon (17'x 47'x 2-4') lily pond garden in Zone 6
Cheers, Steve Henning in Reading, PA USA