Potted lotus is a treasure from top to bottom: enjoy the flowers, eat the seeds, and drink the tea

Growing a pot of lotus in summer

Some lotus are grown from lotus seeds, and some from lotus root. Huahua suggests it is best to use the sprout of the lotus root, as it grows fast and will 100% bloom and set seed.

1. Prepare a intact section of lotus root sprout. Do not use the middle part of the lotus root; use the very end piece, as only this piece can sprout and grow into a lotus.

2. Prepare a large pot, the bigger the better, with a diameter over 30 cm. If you have a large vat for storing flour at home, it is best to use the large vat!

3. Go to a riverbank or pond edge and dig up some silt, or dig up some garden soil and mix a little chicken manure into the bottom to make your own silt. No matter what kind of silt it is, it must be thoroughly sterilized, otherwise it will be full of mosquitoes and fungus gnats!

4. Place the lotus root sprout facing up and bury it in the silt, then pour in clean water, keeping the water layer above the silt at about 3-5 cm.

5. At the current temperature, leaves will grow very quickly!

6. Apply a little decomposed chicken manure fertilizer every half month, and after 1 month it will bloom!

In summer, pick a few lotus leaves and brew some tea!

Summer is hot and it is easy to get internal heat. At this time, you might as well pick a few lotus leaves, dry them in the sun, and brew a pot of tea. It clears heat and reduces internal heat, and the taste is very fresh and fragrant!

1. Pick the lotus leaves, keep only the leaves and not the stems, wash them clean, and place them in the sun to dehydrate until the leaves crumble at a pinch.

2. Break the sun-dried lotus leaves into small pieces, put them into a tea tin, take out a few pieces when drinking tea, brew them with boiling water, and they are ready to drink!

Harvest lotus seeds in autumn and use them to make soup!

In autumn, after the lotus sets fruit and produces lotus seeds, you can pick them and eat them raw or make congee with them - both are very delicious!

1. Fresh lotus seeds can be picked, shelled, and eaten directly. They are very tender and very sweet!

2. You can also dry the lotus seeds, then cook them with white fungus, goji berries, and rock sugar to make congee. It is soft, glutinous, sweet, and fragrant.

Harvest lotus root in winter and use it to make a dish!

When summer turns to winter and the lotus leaves and flowers have all withered, you can tip the lotus out of the large bucket and harvest a full bucket of lotus root, enough to make several meals!

1. Lotus root can be simply stir-fried with chili peppers - crisp, refreshing, and light!

2. It can also be stewed into soup with pork ribs - very nourishing!