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#104704 Aug 7th, 2007 at 06:45 AM
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Is this really necessary? The problem is my waterlilies are turning yellow and dying. The water store said it was probably a lack of fertilizer and probably because they are in small pots. Well, their in shredded coconut balls and I pulled one up and looked and the roots are, oh I don't know, about 2-3 times larger than the ball. So should I go and buy some soil, pots, and fertilizer?


Sarah - Zone 5b/6
LandOfOz #104792 Aug 7th, 2007 at 09:51 AM
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one of my water lillys is not in its jug anymore.it has enough 'muck' on bottom to live just fine so have let it be.My other is in a milk jug top cut off(snip the handle part.I had a leaf grow through it)use a clay type soil& add some kind of gravel on top.I'm sorry.I don't fertilize mine,but is cause don't find fertilizer tabs for ponds where I live.My water lotus is in one of them pink tubs from Hospital that they give out.same set up.(well no cutting..)


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LandOfOz #104801 Aug 7th, 2007 at 10:06 AM
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If you want optimum growth and blooms from the waterlily then it is important to fertilize. You don't have to use the aquatic fertilizer tabs either, you can use Osmicote or a similar time released fertilizer or Jobe plant sticks. I have had better growth and bloom from lilies planted in clay soil then in the coco fiber. Also keep in mind that waterlilies grow on top of the soil not from under the soil. The roots grow into the dirt but the tuber runs on top.

Gardencrazy #104903 Aug 7th, 2007 at 11:46 AM
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I went ahead and bought some tabs, water soil, and a bucket for the lilies. I pulled one of them up and it's about the size of a milk jug, it's huge and has only been in the water for 2 months. I don't want to know how big it will get with regular fertilizing. The lady recommended a HUGE tub for the WL, but it is literally the size of my plant shelf, maybe a little wider even. There was no way it would work. I got a bucket about half the size.

Thanks for the help, ladies. Next time I think I'll look for some osmocote, instead of a little, $11 jar of fertilizer tabs.


Sarah - Zone 5b/6

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