My first lotus bloom this year
 

Of all days for that huge bud to open up, had to be the day when some fantastic storms rolled through here. It's none the worse for wear though, and while I hope it sends up more flower buds, I'll enjoy this one as long as it lasts and be happy that the plant is doing so much better this year after the main tuber died off last year. It's in the sunniest spot in the pond and it's the favorite spot for the fish to hang around, so it's getting lots of fish poop fertilizer so it can only improve. :D

Cindy

That is beautiful!!!!!!! Soooo pretty!!! Thanks for sharing! :thumbs up

It's absolutely gorgeous! :cloud9:

So the rest of the plant floats on the water? Like a water lily? And it puts up a flowering stalk? I've never seen a lotus in person. :o

It starts off later than lilies, doesn't start growing until the water really warms up. Then it sends up surface pads, larger than lily pads, and with an almost velvet texture look to them. Then come the pads that are held above the water, soon followed by the flowers buds. I've shown the bud when it first emerged July 20th to the size it was by August 3rd, then what it looked like just prior to bloom yesterday. The growth is amazing, the bud stock grew almost 2 feet taller and the bud swelled numerous times it's original size in 3 weeks. The pot that this is in is 3 feet below water, so all this plant material has a lot of growing to do before it even gets to the water surface. :laughing:

Cindy

The plant in the pond setting, a little busy in this photo, but look well above the foiliage on the far side of the photo in the pond and you'll see the flower bud, now well above the pads.
Then the bud as it looked yesterday before blooming.

Cindy

OMG clm,how beautiful,wow!!!

That is just beautiful! :cloud9:

I never realized that they grew that quickly or that some of the leaves were that high off the water! And I never would have guessed that the bud would be so high!

Learn something new every day! :thumbs up