
American Lotus (Nelumbium Lutea) 
How to Plant and Raise Them 
In describing this plant we must not lose sight 
of the wonderful green leaves and the strange 
seed pods which are as mysterious and fascinat- 
ing as the flowers and which rise from one to 
four feet out of the water. 
It is the consensus of opinion among most 
people that the lotus is hard to grow. This is 
a mistaken idea, because if the bulbs are prop- 
erly planted and they have crowns, they grow very 
profusely. 
When building a pond for lotus you can make 
it just about any depth you wish. The lotus are 
grown in our garden in dephs of water ranging 
from six inches to three feet. 
We usually like a pond which is irregular in 
shape and sloping from the sides to a depth of 
18 inches in the middle. This gives a chance to all 
water plants that you place in your pond. 
After the pond is built and ready for planting, 
place three inches of well-rotted cow fertilizer over 
the entire bottom; then three or four inches of gar- 
den soil over this; level off and pack down well 
with anything available; then spread clean plaster 
sand completely over the soil. You are now ready 
for planting. 
The crown should be placed up, with the bulb 
lying horizontal when planting because from this 
comes the new joint or runner and the perpendicu- 
lar leaves and stems for the flowers. 
If the crown is ever broken off the bulb is 
worthless. You may plant the bulbs any distance 
apart you wish; however, about two feet is prefer- 
able. For the best results place the bulbs under 
approximately three inches of soil and fertilizer. 
After the planting is completed, place an ordinary 
cake pan with turned up sides in the pond and 
place the garden hose inside and turn on the 
water very slowly. When the pond is filled it 
should be clear as a crystal. 
If this method of planting is followed, fish and 
water snails may be placed in the pond immedi- 
ately as all impurities that may be in the cement 
are counteracted by the dirt and fertilizer. 
Until the growth is well established it is well 
to let a sprinkler that throws large drops of water, 
spray over the pond once a day, preferably in the 
evening or early morning. 
The second and third year you will find the 
growth and the flowers much more beautiful than 
the first year. 
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