Rec.ponds.moderated is now just about 5 months old. Google reports
that we are steadily having in the vicinity of 90 posters. The posts
per month are slowly rising. We have had our challenges and tensions,
but we have made it through them. A warm and civil community is
developing. Phyllis and I are glad.

Our thanks to those who worked so hard to establish the group and to
those who have joined in the discussions.

May your ponds thrive.

Jim

"Phyllis and Jim" wrote in message
oups.com...
Rec.ponds.moderated is now just about 5 months old. Google reports
that we are steadily having in the vicinity of 90 posters. The posts
per month are slowly rising. We have had our challenges and tensions,
but we have made it through them. A warm and civil community is
developing. Phyllis and I are glad.

Our thanks to those who worked so hard to establish the group and to
those who have joined in the discussions.

May your ponds thrive.

Jim

It certainly is a far cry from that "other" newsgroup. Thanks, guys and
gals. Keep up the great posts.

George

"Phyllis and Jim" wrote in message
oups.com...
Rec.ponds.moderated is now just about 5 months old. Google reports
that we are steadily having in the vicinity of 90 posters. The posts
per month are slowly rising. We have had our challenges and tensions,
but we have made it through them. A warm and civil community is
developing. Phyllis and I are glad.

Our thanks to those who worked so hard to establish the group and to
those who have joined in the discussions.

May your ponds thrive.
====================
I'm sure we'll continue to grow as time passes.

I'm enjoying my ponds from the window as I sit here with a walking-air-boot
on my foot. What a hell of a time to break an ankle.
--
RM....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
rec.ponder since late 1996.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
Zone 6. Middle TN USA
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö

Sorry to hear about the ankle. That would be a pain....

Jim

On Fri, 20 Jul 2007 11:01:51 CST, "Reel McKoi"
wrote:

What a hell of a time to break an ankle.

Sorry to hear about your misfortune.

Regards,

Hal

"Hal" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 20 Jul 2007 11:01:51 CST, "Reel McKoi"
wrote:

What a hell of a time to break an ankle.

Sorry to hear about your misfortune.

Regards,

Hal
=========================
Thanks guys. These things never happen in the winter. Broke my knee a few
years ago and lost an entire summer. For a gardener and ponder that's truly
the pits.

My ponds are doing fine with lots of blooms on the water lilies but the
stubborn Lotus still refuses to bloom. Lots of nice leaves but never a
flower in all these years. With the drought we have to top off all the
ponds and tanks weekly. We're still waiting for the pump we ordered from
Foster & Smith.
--
RM....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
rec.ponder since late 1996.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
Zone 6. Middle TN USA
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö

On Sat, 21 Jul 2007 12:03:15 CST, "Reel McKoi"
wrote:

My ponds are doing fine with lots of blooms on the water lilies but the
stubborn Lotus still refuses to bloom. Lots of nice leaves but never a
flower in all these years.

Try my recipe! I use 20 gallon half barrel size pots and fill about
6 to 8 inches with dirt and add 4 Aquatic Spikes. Fill with water,
lay a tuber on the dirt at least 4 inches away from the spikes and
place a rock/weight on top. My unknown variety had 9 blooms this
season and the Mrs Perry D Slocum had three.

I saw one of the plants a friend put in her pond the other day and it
has it's first bloom due to open in a week or so. The dirt and time
released fertilizer seem to make a big difference.

I'm done until I turn the pots over next February. I think it was a
good season.

Regards,

Hal

On Sun, 22 Jul 2007 21:35:13 CST, Hal wrote:

Try my recipe! I use 20 gallon half barrel size pots and fill about
6 to 8 inches with dirt and add 4 Aquatic Spikes. Fill with water,
lay a tuber on the dirt at least 4 inches away from the spikes and
place a rock/weight on top. My unknown variety had 9 blooms this
season and the Mrs Perry D Slocum had three.

I'm done until I turn the pots over next February. I think it was a
good season. Hal

Similar here, only pots I'm using, I believe, are half that size, about
18-20" across, as this is a smaller lotus. I have 2 same variety, and I
divide 1 pot every year, alternating. This year the divided plant had 8-9
buds/blooms on it at one time, more have come up since, the undivided one
has the best & biggest foliage, but only a few buds/blooms so far, and I
have fed it. Both have taller foliage then in years past, I think it is all
the heat waves we've been having this year, they like it hot
apparently. ~ jan
------------
Zone 7a, SE Washington State
Ponds: www.jjspond.us

"Hal" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 21 Jul 2007 12:03:15 CST, "Reel McKoi"
wrote:

My ponds are doing fine with lots of blooms on the water lilies but the
stubborn Lotus still refuses to bloom. Lots of nice leaves but never a
flower in all these years.

Try my recipe! I use 20 gallon half barrel size pots and fill about
6 to 8 inches with dirt and add 4 Aquatic Spikes. Fill with water,
lay a tuber on the dirt at least 4 inches away from the spikes and
place a rock/weight on top. My unknown variety had 9 blooms this
season and the Mrs Perry D Slocum had three.

OK, mine are in a 100 gallon kiddy pool with about 8" of soil and maybe 2"
of water over that. I add Jobe's Rose fertalizer sticks and get plenty of
huge leaves year after year.... not never a flower. It's a huge plant now
and not in one of the ponds. Aquatic Sticks? What is their NPK?

I saw one of the plants a friend put in her pond the other day and it
has it's first bloom due to open in a week or so. The dirt and time
released fertilizer seem to make a big difference.

I'm done until I turn the pots over next February. I think it was a
good season.

No way I can turn over this 100g pool full of wet soil. I'm really afraid
to try and remove the plant because I can't see where the growing tips or
banana shaped growing ends are. Also, how many growing ends or tips would
such a large old plant have? Is there a safe way to do this under the
circumstances?
--
RM....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
rec.ponder since late 1996.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
Zone 6. Middle TN USA
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö

On Mon, 23 Jul 2007 23:24:18 CST, "Reel McKoi"
wrote:

OK, mine are in a 100 gallon kiddy pool with about 8" of soil and maybe 2"
of water over that. I add Jobe's Rose fertalizer sticks and get plenty of
huge leaves year after year.... not never a flower. It's a huge plant now
and not in one of the ponds. Aquatic Sticks? What is their NPK?

The AgSafe Aquatic-Spikes are 12-20-8 instead of the perfect 1-2-1 mix
I prefer for flowering plants, but they are time released and one
spike lasts up to 4 months, which means I only feed once a season.
Directions call for 2 spikes per plant 3" away from the plant crown
and 3" deep. Once the lotus tuber begins to grow it sends roots
around the pot, so I put 4 spikes around the perimeter of the pot and
forget it.

I saw one of the plants a friend put in her pond the other day and it
has it's first bloom due to open in a week or so. The dirt and time
released fertilizer seem to make a big difference.

I'm done until I turn the pots over next February. I think it was a
good season.

No way I can turn over this 100g pool full of wet soil. I'm really afraid
to try and remove the plant because I can't see where the growing tips or
banana shaped growing ends are. Also, how many growing ends or tips would
such a large old plant have? Is there a safe way to do this under the
circumstances?

Never tried it in such a large container, but I would suggest waiting
for the first shoot in the spring and carefully dig up a tuber and try
it in a container that you can dump. I've never tried Jan's method of
allowing a second season of growth without starting over with a new
tuber. I know in the wild they have a second season and more from the
old roots and tubers, but look at the tubers in my pot last year.

http://tinyurl.com/2fxzcb

I don't think I can feed that many tubers in such a small space.

If I had little choice like your situation I think I would try feeding
by the pound or maybe pounds of fertilizer.

Regards,

Hal

"Hal" wrote in message
...


brevity snips

The AgSafe Aquatic-Spikes are 12-20-8 instead of the perfect 1-2-1 mix
I prefer for flowering plants, but they are time released and one
spike lasts up to 4 months, which means I only feed once a season.
Directions call for 2 spikes per plant 3" away from the plant crown
and 3" deep. Once the lotus tuber begins to grow it sends roots
around the pot, so I put 4 spikes around the perimeter of the pot and
forget it.

That's what I've been doing with the Rose spikes.

Never tried it in such a large container, but I would suggest waiting
for the first shoot in the spring and carefully dig up a tuber and try
it in a container that you can dump.

I believe I'll try this next spring. I'll watch to see where the leaves
come up from.....

I've never tried Jan's method of
allowing a second season of growth without starting over with a new
tuber. I know in the wild they have a second season and more from the
old roots and tubers, but look at the tubers in my pot last year.

http://tinyurl.com/2fxzcb

Wow! I can imagine mine also looks like that if they could be seen.

I don't think I can feed that many tubers in such a small space.

If I had little choice like your situation I think I would try feeding
by the pound or maybe pounds of fertilizer.

When I tried regular garden fertilizer 2 summers ago (about 1/2 lb) it
turned the leaves yellowish and the edges browned. Still never got one
flower.
--

RM....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
rec.ponder since late 1996.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
Zone 6. Middle TN USA
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö

"Reel McKoi" wrote:


"Hal" wrote in message
.. .
On Sat, 21 Jul 2007 12:03:15 CST, "Reel McKoi"
wrote:

My ponds are doing fine with lots of blooms on the water lilies but the
stubborn Lotus still refuses to bloom. Lots of nice leaves but never a
flower in all these years.

Try my recipe! I use 20 gallon half barrel size pots and fill about
6 to 8 inches with dirt and add 4 Aquatic Spikes. Fill with water,
lay a tuber on the dirt at least 4 inches away from the spikes and
place a rock/weight on top. My unknown variety had 9 blooms this
season and the Mrs Perry D Slocum had three.

OK, mine are in a 100 gallon kiddy pool with about 8" of soil and maybe 2"
of water over that. I add Jobe's Rose fertalizer sticks and get plenty of
huge leaves year after year.... not never a flower. It's a huge plant now
and not in one of the ponds. Aquatic Sticks? What is their NPK?

I saw one of the plants a friend put in her pond the other day and it
has it's first bloom due to open in a week or so. The dirt and time
released fertilizer seem to make a big difference.

I'm done until I turn the pots over next February. I think it was a
good season.

No way I can turn over this 100g pool full of wet soil. I'm really afraid
to try and remove the plant because I can't see where the growing tips or
banana shaped growing ends are. Also, how many growing ends or tips would
such a large old plant have? Is there a safe way to do this under the
circumstances?


We have just been thru a 100 year rain month in Texas.

Before the rain my Lotus was up just fine. I was getting about 5 or 6
blossoms a day. The three sections of lotus are up to as much as 6
feet tall now, I think there were only 5 blossoms out today.

The plants are in a bog and along about 10 feet of the edge of a 5000
gallon pond. They were so successful last year that I had to reduce
the population during the winter.

They sure are pretty.

"cnb" wrote in message
...

The plants are in a bog and along about 10 feet of the edge of a 5000
gallon pond. They were so successful last year that I had to reduce
the population during the winter.
They sure are pretty.
=================================
This 100g pool I have mine in is like a bog and the plant thrives. It's
about 5' tall. I just fertilized it with a 5-10-5 before I came back in
(it's HOT out there). I'm starting to wonder if this Lotus has some kind of
genetic problem and is just unable to bloom. I believe these plants are
called "blind."
--
RM....
Frugal ponding since 1995.
rec.ponder since late 1996.
My Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
Zone 6. Middle TN USA
~~~~ }((((* ~~~ }{{{{(ö

On Wed, 25 Jul 2007 21:05:36 CST, cnb
wrote:

We have just been thru a 100 year rain month in Texas.

I've been thinking about all of you and the fun you must be having
with all the rain. I lived in Texas for about 10 years, but I
escaped.

Before the rain my Lotus was up just fine. I was getting about 5 or 6
blossoms a day. The three sections of lotus are up to as much as 6
feet tall now, I think there were only 5 blossoms out today.

The plants are in a bog and along about 10 feet of the edge of a 5000
gallon pond. They were so successful last year that I had to reduce
the population during the winter.

They sure are pretty.

I'm sure they are pretty and wish I had that kind of place to grow
them.

Regards,

Hal

On Wed, 25 Jul 2007 17:44:29 CST, "Reel McKoi"
wrote:

I believe I'll try this next spring. I'll watch to see where the leaves
come up from.....

I didn't find one until February this year, but the first one can be
sacrificed without a lot of grief. There were a number of tubers to
pick from. I have friends who grope around in the mud for tubers,
I've never tried that, but I wish you well.

Regards,

Hal