Johnsons's Garden Centers Text File document - copyright 2002
PDF file available at http://www.johnsonsgarden.com/newsletter/watergarden.html

Exotic Tropical Aquatics
July 2001
Simon Seah, Johnson's East Store Manager

    With the onset of warm weather, water gardens thrive with life in
the form of plants and fish. Consider changing the effect of your water
garden with the use of tropical aquatics. Tropical marginals and water
lilies can give your pond an exotic aura.

    Tropical marginals offer an array of texture, shape, flower-type and
fragrance. Try diversifying the look of your pond by experimenting with
the different traits ofÊthese plants. Some of the most popular options
in tropical marginals are aquatic cannas, papyrus, miniature papyrus,
umbrella palms, the sensitive plant, and taro.

    Aquatic cannas are tolerant of numerous inches of water above their
crown level. Their tall nature and broad leaves give your water garden
an exotic tropical look. The vast array of flower colors in cannas are
also an excellent reason for their inclusion in a pond.

    The papyrus and umbrella palms are unique for their foliage ...
vertical stems with "mop heads" add a vertical accent and unique visual
interest to the pond. Giant papyrus grows to over 6' while miniature
papyrus reaches 2'. Umbrella palm and mini-umbrella palms are unique
features for ponds of all sizes. Umbrella palm averages around 4'-6'
whereas mini-umbrella palm grows to 3'.

    The sensitive plant and taro are other water garden plants with
unique foliage. The sensitive plant looks like a fern and grows much
like a ground cover in your water garden. The most unique feature of
this plant is that the leaves close upon contact ... ergo ... the sensitive
plant.

    Taro is a relative of elephant's ear commonly grown in gardens.
Taro, however, comes in various stem colors with the typical veined
elephant's ear leaves.

    Tropical water lilies are the ideal addition to ponds of any size.
There is sure to be a variety to suit your needs. Tropical water lilies
flower well above the water level sometimes standing 1.5' above the
surface. They come in a wider range of colors from blues, purples, reds,
pinks, whites, yellows, even GREEN flowers ... in numerous shades É some
with almost a neon effect! Tropical water lilies come in both day and
night bloomers. Night bloomers open in early evening and remain
openÊuntil late morning the following day. The inclusion of tropical
water lilies into your pond also brings great fragrance to your water
garden. Most tropical water lilies are notorious for being quite
fragrant, but hardy lilies are rarely fragrant.

    Lotus is another dramatic plant to include in your water garden.
They range in color from yellows, whites, reds, and pinks. Lotus flowers
are among the largest of all aquatic plants, easily reaching dinner
plate size!!!! The foliage, flowers and seed pod stand 1.5' to 6' above
water's surface.

    Many of these aquatics can be used for flower arrangements, both cut
and dried, as an alternative to the common plants already used in floral
arrangements.

    Part of the fun in water gardening is seeing the changes from season
to season and to observe the differences in effect of a new plant in the
pond. But if you already have sufficient plant life, perhaps it's time
to change or add to your water feature with a different fountain head,
waterfall, or stream. Or better yet, stop in to any of Johnson's Garden
Centers' three locations for help with your water feature!