Indoor waterlilies, the flowers that float

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This article titled “Indoor waterlilies, the flowers that float” was written by James Wong, for The Observer on Sunday 29th October 2017 06.00 UTC

As we slide towards winter, my attention is always drawn to what I can grow in the great indoors to get my gardening fix. Now, over the past few years I have been experimenting with all manner of weird and wonderful houseplants and I think I have finally managed to find one that ticks all the boxes. Introducing indoor waterlilies, undoubtedly the quirkiest and yet one of the easiest of houseplants to grow.

These are without doubt the quirkiest and yet one of the simplest houseplants to grow

Now you might think growing these beauties indoors would require some kind of massive heated pond in a Victorian conservatory, but if you pick your variety right, they will fit into relatively tiny spaces. How tiny? Well I have grown ‘Helvola’, to my knowledge the very smallest commercial cultivar, in a range of containers as small as a 30cm glass fruit bowl. Its button-sized white flowers can continue for a good nine months of the year under ideal light conditions indoors in exchange for very little work, aside from the occasional water top up.

Splash of colour: an indoor waterlily. Photograph: Emily Brooke Sandor/Getty Images

I bought my little lilies online and washed as much of the claggy, nutrient-rich mud off them as I could and then planted them directly in a range of large fruit or salad bowls and a small fish tank. I use a soil-based aquarium planting mix (available online and at aquarium shops) which helps keep the water clear, and looks more like dark ornamental pebbles than grim pond mud. I like to give the mix a good few rinses under the tap, too, to remove any fine dust and other particles. Once the water is settled I slowly top it up to give the plant a good 15cm depth for its pads to float on. Any dwarf oxygenating aquarium plants (no more than 10cm high) can be planted around your lily, too, to help keep the water clear and add more visual interest.

All you need to do now is add a light. I use one of the new ultra energy-efficient LED grow bulbs popped into a standard desk lamp. These require far less energy than normal bulbs and produce very little heat. The combination between lamp, water and greenery makes striking living ornaments on my dining table and book shelves that require very little extra effort. Aside from flicking the lamp on each morning (you could of course get a cheap plug-in timer to not need to bother) and keeping the water level topped up, the only other thing I do is add a drop of aquarium plant fertiliser once every couple of weeks in the spring and summer.

Presto! A beautiful mini pond that can fit on any desktop.

Email James at james.wong@observer.co.uk or follow him on Twitter @Botanygeek

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