Nelumbo Nucifera
We LOVE this lotus!! You will love this lotus!
'Impressions of West Lake' is a stunningly beautiful, deep red lotus that bears the name of one of the most renowned tourist spots in China. We visited West Lake on a rainy day shrouded in mist - isn't it magical in the picture below?
This lotus has a deep ruby-red flower that boasts a perfect bowl shape and it blooms all summer long. The flower is held high above the leaves. A lovely tribute to a beautiful place! Lots and lots of flowers!
Look for this variety to be one of the first ones in your garden to bloom and it will continue all summer long. The group picture below shows several pots of Impressions of West Lake blooming heavily before most of the lotus have even set buds! We recommend it for our customers with cooler temperatures in the spring but it also loves the summer heat.
Flower Color: Brilliant Red
Plant Height: Tall, 48” and taller
Flower Type: Multi-petal, more than 50 petals
Pot Size: 20” and wider, 12”-18” deep
HOW TO FERTILIZE LOTUS
For conventional fertilizer (tablets or loose prills) which releases quickly when water is added:
Wait until the lotus plant has several floating leaves or begins to put up aerial leaves before adding fertilizer.
Choose a good fertilizer such as Waterlily World Tablets, Pondtabbs or Landon’s Aquatic Fertilizer and follow the instructions carefully. The amount of fertilizer to use is usually based on the size of the pot and the amount of soil in the pot. For example, most of the small tablets are added at a ratio of 1-2 tablets per gallon of soil in the pot. Once the lotus has started to grow vigorously tablets can be added every 2-3 weeks. Stop fertilizing in late summer to allow the lotus to use up all the fertilizer in the pot before going dormant. This encourages the lotus to form better rhizomes.
For SLOW-RELEASE FERTILIZER like Nutricote 14-4-14, 100 day fertilizer:
*follow amount directions on package. Place fertilizer around the bottom of the pot then add soil. Plant rhizome in the soil at the top of soil layer and let it grow down to find fertilizer. We use slow-release fertilizer but begin adding extra Pondtabbs after 3 months when growth gets vigorous and we continue adding extra fertilizer until late summer.
Do NOT use 360 day fertilizer because it will release fertilizer for too long and the lotus will not form as many rhizomes when it goes dormant.