Tender Love Lotus Plant Description
Tender Love Lotus sends out bloom after bloom all summer long! This is a small lotus which grows 1 - 3 feet tall and the flowers are large on this little lotus plant! The color on Tender Love Lotus is a vibrant, rich, red and contrasts well with the emerald-green foliage. Brilliant-Red/Dwarf/Single-Petal
Tender Love Lotus Planting Instructions
Lotus should be planted in the month of May, when temperatures are warm, when daytime temperatures are consistently in the 70's and nighttime temperatures are consistently in the 50's. Place your lotus tuber in a wide container using loam soil. Gently dig a shallow trench in the surface of the soil with your hand and place the lotus tuber in the trench, taking care not to damage the growth tips. Gently cover the lotus tuber with an inch of soil, leaving the growth tips exposed. Gently add 2 - 4 inches of water above the soil and place your container where the tuber will receive 8 - 12 hours of sunlight daily. In a week or two you should have coin leaves on the surface of the water. A week or so after you have coin leaves you should have aerial leaves growing out of the water.
How to fertilize your lotus
Once you have aerial leaves, you may fertilize your lotus with 1/2 dose of fertilizer. Two weeks after that, you may fertilize with the recommended dosage of fertilizer. We recommend slow release fertilizer tabs or spikes. Gently press the tabs or spikes into the soil near the roots of your lotus, taking care not to damage the roots.
Please read our complete planting guidelines which are sent with your lotus order.
What Is Loam Soil?
Loam soil is a good mixture of Topsoil and Sand
If you are lucky enough to have good topsoil in your backyard, by all means, use your topsoil. All you will have to do is add fertilizer. If you are not so lucky--and your backyard is sand or heavy red or yellow clay, you can mix up a batch of loam soil.
You can create your own loam soil by mixing these two ingredients together
- 2/3 Inorganic Topsoil (Little or no organic material added)
- 1/3 Pool Filter Sand
Mix together thoroughly with a little water. Your soil should clump when squeezed. If your soil is mixed properly, it will not muddy your pond water.
You can purchase inexpensive bags of inexpensive / poor Topsoil at Lowes or Home-Depot. Good soil clumps together as a ball in your hand with only a little moisture.
Don't buy brands like Scott's or Miracle-Gro, as they will contain too much organic matter that can foul your water. Buy an unbranded bag of topsoil instead.
You can purchase Pool Filter Sand at any store that sells pool supplies.
Loam soil is well suited for all aquatic plants (except oxygenators). Oxygenators rarely need to be planted, just anchored in the substrate or in a container filled with sand or 1/8 inch pea gravel.
Sand holds little water but does allow for aeration and drainage.
Some DO's and DON'TS regarding Aquatic Planting Soil
DO NOT use potting soils ( as they are too light and will float right out of the pot). Potting Soil has organic material that will rot and foul your water!
DO NOT add too much composted material (as it is too rich in organic matter and it will ferment underwater and destroy the ecology of your pond).
DO NOT use 100% calcined clay as there is no nutritional value in calcined clay.
DO NOT add rocks, stones or pebbles to the top of your planting container as this will inhibit the growth of your plants. Plants do not grow in rocks and stones in nature!
DO NOT purchase API Aquatic Planting Media or Microbe-lift Aquatic Planting Media as these products are NOT suitable for waterlilies, lotus or most other pond plants. They are suitable for submerged grasses ONLY!
