Detailed Guide to Growing and Caring for Victoria Amazonica

Victoria amazonica is a perennial or annual large floating-leaved herbaceous plant of the genus Victoria in the water lily family (Nymphaeaceae), known for its enormous plate-like leaves and beautiful, strongly fragrant flowers. The foliage-viewing period is 150 days, and the flowering period is 90 days. If Victoria amazonica is combined with aquatic plants such as lotus and water lilies in a layout, it will form a perfect and unique water landscape that is unforgettable. Let us take a look together below at the growing methods and care notes for Victoria amazonica!

Growth Habits of Victoria Amazonica

Victoria amazonica is a typical tropical plant. It likes high temperatures and high humidity, and has extremely poor cold tolerance. When the temperature drops to 20°C, growth stalls. When the temperature drops to around 14°C, it suffers cold damage, and when the temperature drops to around 8°C, it dies from the cold. It likes fertile, deep sludge, but does not like water that is too deep. The sludge in the cultivation pond needs to be more than 50 cm deep, and a water depth not exceeding 1 m is more suitable. When planting, apply sufficient farmyard manure or cake fertilizer. During the leafing and flowering period, apply 1 to 2 topdressings, and fertilization should stop after autumn begins. It likes light, and the cultivation water surface should have sufficient sunlight. The key technique in artificial cultivation is cold protection for overwintering.

Propagation Methods of Victoria Amazonica

1. Sowing: The seeds of Victoria amazonica mature in mid-October. After collection, wash them clean and store them in clear water. In the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, indoor germination is carried out in early April with heating at 25-28°C. The seeds can be placed in a culture dish with water 2.5-3.0 cm deep, changing the water once a day. They germinate 1 week after sowing.

2. Seedling raising: The newly born seedlings of Victoria amazonica begin to be transplanted into pots for seedling cultivation after about 20 days. Use small pots with a diameter of about 10 cm, filled with relatively fine mud and a small amount of sandy soil. Do not fill them too full, with one plant per pot. The planting depth should be such that the seed shell is slightly above the soil surface, and place them upright in warm water so that the leaves float on the water surface.

Growing Methods for Victoria Amazonica

1. Soil: Victoria amazonica likes slightly acidic to neutral fertile soil, and one plant needs 1.5-2 cubic m of soil. Before entering the pond, sufficient base fertilizer must be applied, preferably mainly green manure. Planting in vats easily causes malnutrition and affects leaf and flower growth. When applying base fertilizer, an appropriate amount of pond sludge, compound fertilizer, and about 3 kg of hoof pieces should be mixed together, and some manure and cake fertilizer can also be added, which can also make the soil loose.

2. Planting out: Victoria amazonica is a sun-loving aquatic flowering plant. The selected pond should face the sun and be sheltered from the wind to ensure that the Victoria amazonica pond has sufficient light. There are two ways to transplant. One is to transplant directly into the pond, with a whole plant occupying about 30 sq m of the pond. Before transplanting, the pond water must be drained dry, the pond cleaned, drainage and irrigation devices installed, and the water level controlled. The other is indirect transplanting, in which the seedlings are first planted into vats, and then the vats are placed into the pond.

3. Management: Victoria amazonica goes through a vegetative growth period and a flowering and fruiting period. The vegetative growth period includes the seedling stage and the rapid growth stage. These periods are important stages for the growth of Victoria amazonica and must be carefully managed. At first, the seedlings are not very adaptable in the open field, and the temperature difference between day and night is large. If it encounters cloudy and rainy weather, the leaves may rot, so the film should be opened on sunny days and covered on rainy days and at night, continuing until mid-June.

4. Topdressing: After planting out, when the seedling stage is nearing its end, Victoria amazonica should be topdressed once every 10 days, mainly with compound fertilizer. By the rapid growth stage, it should be topdressed once every 5 days. After flowering, because the weather is hot, the temperature is high, the plant grows vigorously, and the flowering rate is high. When fertilizing, a small perforated plastic bag can be used to hold about 20 g of quick-acting phosphate fertilizer and bury it not far from the roots to help the root system develop in a balanced way.

5. Water level: Victoria amazonica is a shallow-water aquatic plant. The water level generally does not exceed 0.4 m above the top of the plant stem, and the range of water level change should also be controlled within 0.3 m. During the seedling stage after transplanting, the water level should be adjusted according to the growth condition of the seedlings. In the pond, aquatic plants that entangle the leaves and flowers of Victoria amazonica, such as green algae, spirogyra, and duckweed, should often be removed to keep the pond water clean and free the water surface for new leaves to grow.

6. Light: Victoria amazonica likes light. When cultivated in a greenhouse in spring, sunlight is insufficient, so a 100-watt electric lamp can be installed 1.5 m above the seedlings to increase light intensity and light duration. In the pond, aquatic plants that entangle the leaves and flowers of Victoria amazonica, such as green algae, spirogyra, and duckweed, should often be removed. Dead and rotten old leaves on the plant should be cut off at any time to keep the pond water clean and free the water surface for new leaves to grow.

Precautions for Victoria Amazonica

1. Cotton leafworm

[Damage] Late July and mid-to-late August are the peak damage periods. The larvae chew and feed on the rolled leaf margins.

[Control] It can be sprayed and killed with 1000x dipterex or decis.

2. Lotus aphid

[Damage] From August to October, nymphs and adults gather on the leaf surface and leaf margins to suck sap.

[Control] Use 1000x 40% dimethoate or 2000x decis for control. The latter is harmful to fish. It can also be sprayed and killed with 200x 70% menazon wettable powder or 800-1000x 3% derris extract.

3. Elliptic radix snail and flat spire snail

[Damage] Late June is the peak damage period. They mainly damage the leaves above water, mostly attaching to the underside of leaves and gnawing the leaf flesh, causing cavities of varying sizes. Young leaves are damaged more seriously than old leaves.

[Control] They can be captured manually or after being lured and gathered with watermelon rind. Black carp (snail-eating black carp) can also be stocked to swallow them. One week before planting, drain the pond water dry and sprinkle carbofuran powder on the mud surface to kill them.

4. Fish damage

[Damage] Except for goldfish, most fish can damage young leaves and young roots, especially grass carp and carp, which cause the most serious damage.

[Control] Reeds, bamboo blinds, galvanized wire, or nylon netting can be used to enclose them for about one month, and the soil surface can be covered with a layer of river sand or pebbles, which can protect the seedlings.