I was surprised at the number of
folks that fertilize their plants. I'd read in one of Helen Nash's books
that this was not needed and would tend to encourage algae bloom.

By and large Helen nash is spot on, in a well proprtioned pond with well chosen plants. But, one size may not fit quite all

Some folk have ponds crowded with plants, where waterlilies struggle to compete for fertility, its logical and effective to squeeze a tomato spike close to the roots of preferred plants, to slow release the feed to the plant that needs perking up

In hot climates with a long Summer, fertility levels may need a perk, tropical waterlilies are supposedly greedy feeders, though I suspect more than a few varieties are just plain poor performers in continental heat if you have to push them hard.

Alas, commercial growers often dump shoddy fickle plants on the market with a couldn't care less, the sooner the customer kills them, the sooner they buy another one attitude, 'flash in the pan' new introductions, where plants with abysmal cultivation information are fobbed off for top dollar

Some folk filter their ponds to an extent where fertility levels are non existent, which is sort of counter productive and sterile, as fish are well able to cope with modest levels of fertility and benign bacteria, I do wonder that sterile 'clean' ponds are sitting ducks for infection and disease which find it easier to take off in the absence of 'normal' healthy pond organisms (similar to hospitals, where 'super' bacteria get the opportunity to thrive in 'sterile' conditions)

In climates where excessive heat is a factor, fertilising can compound a problem, scorching the roots, pollution, added to the stress the plant is already under. More than a few varieties of waterlily are shy bloomers and go more or less dormant when temps go over 90°f

Some waterlilies, often those dished out dirt cheap on message boards such as americanponders, by folk desperate to get rid of them, are just plain awful varieties. Poor bloom to pad ratios, fast spreading odorata rhisomes... In desperation to get them to bloom some folk will try to apply fertilisers to what are less than mediocre plants dumped at the bottom end of the market.

Some folk have crown rot infected ponds. It would come as no surprise if folk in desperation tried to shovel fertiliser into ponds to try to get them to grow

Incompetent cultivation information is quite often the source of ill fated cess pit 'fertilising' regimes. By folk who hardly have a pond or a garden to call their own

Its not unknown for ranting self professed 'professional artists - photographers - landscape artists - gurus' aka scamsters with not a relevant qualification to their name, abundant displays of ADD, abuse and psychotic disorders to present some half baked witchbrew recipe as the be all and end all, one size fits all of potting recipes... on the strength they once saw a grotty variety like Colorado growing rampant in someone else's pond (after having killed everything else they tried)

Regards,andy
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