HOW TO BE SUCCESSFUL WITH A WATER GARDEN 
PREPARATION FOR PLANTING. Fill the shallow water and bog 
plant pockets and the water-lily tubs with soil topped off with 
one inch of sand, and place the tubs at their proper levels in the 
pool. Next, fill the pool with water and let it stand 3 days before 
doing any planting. In small or shallow pools where it is not 
practicable to use soil containers place about 6 inches of soil, 
(or enough soil to allow for not more than 12 inches of water), 
over the whole bottom of the pool. Top off the soil with 1 inch of 
clean sand. Place a large piece of strong paper, or cardboard, or 
any other suitable cover on top of the sand and slowly run the 
water in on top of the cover. Take this precaution so as not to 
stir up the sand and soil on the bottom of the pool. 
SOIL AND FERTILIZERS. Mix 3 parts of good, heavy, clayey top soil 
(sod preferable), with 1 part of rotten cow manure. Dry cow 
manure, also known as shredded or pulverized manure, obtain- 
able in any hardware, seed, or garden supply store, may be 
used if wet manure is not obtainable. Add 1 pint of Bonemeal 
to a bushel of soil of the above mixture. Better results may be 
obtained if the above mixture is composted from 3 to 12 months 
before using it; however, for best results, fresh cow manure 
should be used in composting. When composting, and cow 
manure is not available, dry manure, or horse manure, or any 
other manure may be used. Never use swamp muck, soil from 
woods, peatmoss, or sand as a substitute for soil or fertilizer. 
SIZE AND SPACING OF SOIL CONTAINERS. Medium or small 
water-lilies will grow satisfactorily in wooden buckets which 
are 10 to 12 inches in diameter and 10 to 12 inches deep. Large 
water-lilies (annual or perennial), should have at least 1 bushel 
of soil (or a box at least 18”x18'’x12"" deep), for best results. 
Perennial lilies should be planted at least 3 feet apart; annuals 
should be planted 4 to 5 feet apart. 
WATER DEPTH FOR LILIES. Water-lilies in natural pools may be 
planted in a water depth up to 24 inches, but if they are planted 
in containers, in artificial pools we recommend a water depth 
of no more than 12 inches from the top of the container to the 
top of the water. Neither in natural nor in artificial pools should 
water-lilies be planted in less than 6 inches of water. For best 
results with young plants, especially with lotus, we recommend 
only 6 inches of water for the beginning and then lowering the 
soil container to a depth of no more than 12 inches—8 inches 
being a preferable depth—as the plants become well estab- 
lished 
HOW TO PLANT. You are not ready to start planting unless all of 
your boxes and pockets are filled with soil topped off with 
1 inch of sand and the water has been in your pool for at least 
three days. All water-lilies (especially annuals), and aquatic 
plants should be planted immediately after unwrapping them 
because they will spoil if left to dry. (Caution: If the aforesaid 
plants cannot be planted immediately upon unwrapping they 
should be completely submerged in water until they can be 
planted.) 
To plant the lilies and other aquatics just press the roots or 
(in the case of plants with a ball of soil), the ball of soil into 
the, by now, soft sand and soil. Do not bury too deep in the soil. 
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Be sure that the crown of the plant is just above the sand. The 
crown of the plant is that part of the plant where the stems of 
the leaves and the roots meet. 
The banana-like roots of the Lotus should be handled very 
gently so as not to break the brittle growing points. Press the 
Lotus roots, horizontally, 2 inches into the soil. 
WHEN TO PLANT. Perennial lilies and perennial bog plants may 
be planted early in the spring but not before the water has 
warmed up sufficiently to encourage immediate new growth. 
This date is usually around the latter part of April in the latitude 
of New York State. After May 1, is the time to plant Lotus and 
Oxygenating Plants; this is also the time to stock your pool with 
goldfish and scavengers. All the other plants listed in this book, 
including annual water-lilies, should not be planted before 
June 1. Often customers become impatient with our reluctance 
to sell annual water-lilies before June 1. The reason for our 
reluctance is: not because the lilies are not ready. Just the 
contrary is true because by the end of May these lilies are 
already quite large, and providing room for all of them in our 
greenhouses becomes a problem. However, our many years of 
experience have shown us that the customer who waits even 
longer than June 1, the date we suggest, before planting annuals 
outdoors is usually far ahead of the customer who takes these 
lilies away before June 1, against our advice. 
CARE OF POOL DURING SUMMER. For luxuriant growth of bog 
plants and water-lilies, especially annuals, feed every two 
weeks starting four weeks after planting by inserting 2 table- 
spoonfuls of Vigoro, Bonemeal, or Bloodmeal wrapped in cheese- 
cloth into the soil near the roots. Although not necessary for the 
growth of the lilies, but for the appearance of the pool, pick off 
the old leaves and flowers of the plants. Keep an eye on ram- 
pant growers such as Hyacinths, Parrot Feather, and Anacharis 
so that they do not crowd slower growing plants. Once a week 
spray your pool with water, using a garden hose, to keep in 
check small black aphids which sometimes during dry summers 
infest the leaves and stems of plants which grow above the 
water. If aphids persist, in spite of the water spraying, spray 
with Red Arrow. This spray is harmless to the fish if the direc- 
tions on the bottle are followed. 
WINTER CARE OF POOLS, FISH, AND PLANTS. For winter care 
of Goldfish, Lotus, Perennial Lilies, and Bog Plants leave the 
water in the pool, and cover the pool with boards with leaves 
or straw heaped on top of them to prevent the water from 
freezing. If it is not possible to leave the water in the pool, 
remove the plants with their soil receptacles and bury them in 
the ground below the frost line (18 to 24 inches underground). 
Or place them in any cool place which is free from frost such 
as the cellar. If you are going to store them in a place such as 
the cellar, be sure to keep them moist so as to prevent dry rot. 
If the plants are planted in soil on the bottom of the pool, 
cover the soil and plants with manure, leaves, or straw to 
prevent freezing of the roots. If the fish are brought indoors in 
the fall be sure to provide large enough aquariums for them. 
Many more fish are killed every fall by crowding indoors than 
by freezing outdoors under the ice. 




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ARDSLEY, N. Y. 
