How to plant a water lily just bought? Detailed planting method for beginners

Water lilies are deeply loved by the public, not only because their flowers are very beautiful, but also because they are a very easy-to-grow aquatic plant. When grown in pots, the ornamental effect is very good. And for many friends who dislike hassle, you can directly buy ready-made seedlings to plant. As long as we transplant them according to scientific methods, they are very easy to keep alive. So, how do you plant a water lily just bought?

As for the water lily seedlings you buy, you can buy either miniature small seedlings or medium-sized small seedlings. Miniature seedlings can be grown on a balcony at home, while medium-sized seedlings can be directly potted in a vat or basin. After we bring the water lily seedlings home, we can open the packaging and start planting.

First, open the packaging bag of the bowl lotus seedling, then take out the water lily seedling. Generally, the water lily seedlings you buy are carefully packaged by the seller, mostly wrapped in sphagnum moss to keep them moist. After removing the sphagnum moss, we can see the water lily roots at a glance. After cleaning off the sphagnum moss from the water lily roots, soak them in clean water for 2 hours to let them fully absorb water.

While the water lily seedlings are soaking, we can prepare the pot mud. For potting water lilies, it is best to use pond mud. If you do not have it, you can also use garden soil or mountain soil instead, but if you can find some yellow sand to mix in, the effect will be even better. Then pour in some water and stir the soil and water thoroughly and evenly, preferably into a paste.

After fully mixing the mud and water, let it settle, and at the same time pour off the excess water on the surface, especially the water that looks relatively dirty. Generally, it needs to settle for more than half an hour, and then remove the surface bubbles and dirty water. After the water lily has soaked for 2 hours, we can use the settled mud to plant it.

When planting water lilies, we can generally use the double-pot method, which means preparing a flower pot and a large vat, planting the water lily in the flower pot, and then placing the flower pot into the large vat. The flower pot size should preferably have a diameter of 30 cm and a depth of 16 cm; the large vat should preferably have a diameter of 41 cm and a depth of 48 cm.

Before planting, we can add some base fertilizer to the bottom of the pot. It is recommended to use a slow-release long-acting fertilizer that promotes flowering. It does not need to be too much; just pour half a pack of the general packaging into the bottom of the pot. Then add the settled, soft, paste-like mud into the pot, filling it about half full. Next, prepare to plant the soaked water lily seedling into it. But if we are planting it into the mud, we can appropriately trim the roots a bit, using scissors to cut off those useless black dead roots, broken roots, and other poor-quality roots, and then plant it into the pot.

During the planting process, note that first you need to straighten out the water lily's root system, then use one hand to make an opening in the pot mud, and with the other hand put the water lily roots into it, then release the hand that made the opening and gently move the mud around the plant until all the water lily's roots are buried in the mud. Never directly press the water lily's roots hard into the mud, otherwise you may damage its root system.

After completing the planting of the water lily seedling into the pot, slowly pour water along the inner edge of the flower pot until the water surface is close to the rim of the pot. After that, we should also clean off the residual mud on the rim of the pot to make the flower pot look neater. At the same time, to improve the ornamental value of the potted plant, we can also spread a layer of perlite or small stones on the surface of the pot, which can also help prevent the mud from seeping out when adding water.