The Garden Magazine, November, 1923 
167 
growing and blooming period. The plants should never be 
allowed to make seed if it is desired that they continue in bloom 
for a long period. 
“We use both night-blooming and day-blooming Water- 
lilies and have the best success when we have the night-bloomers 
submerged to a depth of from ten to twelve 
inches, while the day-bloomers require less, say 
from six to eight inches. . 
“About the last of December, we drain the 
lily pond, take up the clumps of Lilies, separate 
the bulbs, and after a few weeks, start the 
plants from these bulbs for the next season in 
small pots. We place each bulb in a separate 
pot and then submerge a section of the pots in 
a running stream of water. By March the first 
of our young bulbs have made sufficient growth 
to be transplanted to their permanent positions 
in the lily pond. The soil boxes have been 
renovated in the meanwhile, new soil having 
been put in and thoroughly pulverized and 
mixed. 
“ Since we are not troubled by any great de¬ 
gree of cold in San Antonio, our Lilies are kept 
out-of-doors the year round; in colder climates 
it is necessary to start the 
bulbs indoors, preferably in 
a greenhouse. 
“We have experimented 
with the Victoria regia for 
the last eight years. Dur¬ 
ing this time we have been 
successful in getting fine 
plants only two seasons. 
We had some gigantic speci¬ 
mens last year, the leaves 
of some being strong enough 
to bear the weight of a 
man, and measuring 62 
inches in diameter. We 
always grow the Victoria 
from seed. One point to 
remember is that both seed 
and young plants must not 
be allowed to get chilled. 
We plant the seed in March 
in soil in little pots, which 
we submerge under a glass-topped box in a stream of running 
water—the pots are totally submerged in a warm place, 
preferably where the temperature is never lower than 70 degrees 
Fahrenheit. In about three weeks after germination, we trans¬ 
plant the young plants from the pots to their places in the pond. 
THE SUNKEN GARDENS 
AT SAN ANTONIO 
Where “dozens of quaint 
Water-lily blossoms, peeping 
out from nests of glossy 
leaves, create a scene never 
to be forgotten” 
AFLOAT IN A LILY LEAF 
this small maid of 43 pounds finds the 62-inch (in di¬ 
ameter) leaf of Victoria regia a comfortable and securely 
anchored ship. The boxes in which these giant leaves take 
root are shown in the lower cut with its view of the drained 
pond being prepared for a new season. In Brackenridge 
Park, San Antonio, Texas 
“Of the very many varieties of Water-lilies, 
experiment has taught us that there are a few 
which we can rely upon. These we use almost 
exclusively: 
Night-Bloomers: dentata superba, probably the best white; 
Omarana, a good pink; rubra rosea, a beautiful rose-color; Frank 
Trelease, a dark red. 
Day-Bloomers: William Stone, the largest blue; capensis, a 
fine blue; Ernest Gross Herzog Ludwig, a very prolific blue. 
Of the smaller day-bloomers, these are good: lucida, flesh pink; 
Attraction, dark red; tuberosa Richardsoni, white; Marliacea 
chromatella, yellow; flava florida, pale blooming yellow. 
