Three Beautiful Water Flowers for Your Pond

The lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) is native to parts of Australia and Asia, where it has been cultivated for centuries.

In some some countries, it is considered a sacred flower and both India and Vietnam has adopted it as their national flower.

But this hardy floating plant is perfectly at home in backyard ponds in the United States.

This perennial aquatic plant can grow to a height of 4-6 feet and will beautify your pond in the summer and go dormant in the winter.

Under the right conditions, the lotus can live for years. According to a study footnoted in Wikipedia, the oldest recorded lotus germination came from seeds 1,300 years old recovered from a dry lakebed in northeastern China.

Water lilies belong to the family of flowering water plants known as Nymphaeaceae. There are approximately 70 varieties of water lilies, which can grow to a height of about 6 inches.

These aquatic plants are divided into two categories - tropical and hardy. Hardy water lilies only bloom during the day and close at night, while some tropical lilies may bloom at night and close in the morning. Blooms typically last 3-4 days.

Arrowhead is from a genus of about 30 species of aquatic plants known as Sagittaria. The name comes from the arrow-shaped leaves of the plant.

Most of these perennial water plants are native to the Americas, although some species are indigenous to Europe and Asia. They are commonly found in ponds, canals and slow rivers. They can grow to three feet tall and can be aggressive spreaders, so many water gardeners confine this plant to containers.