Monday, July 17, 2006

Water Lilies and Lotuses




The water garden at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden was another stunning area to visit. Two symetrical rectangular ponds brimmed with a wide selection of plants. Bright blue dragonflies, too small and too quick to be photographed, darted among the lilies.

The center of the white flower was quite different. It almost looks like a green shower head. It remains after the petals of the flower fall off.

2 comments:

Chris Kreussling (Flatbush Gardener) said...

Brooklyn Botanic Garden! Practically right around the corner from me! Well, just three subway stops away, anyway.

The "white lily" is sacred lotus, Nelumbo nucifera. They're my favorite plant at BBG at this time of year. They're so tall, dramatic, and sculptural. The beautiful showerhead becomes the seedpod.

The upright, circular leaves standing upright out of the water is the easiest way to identify Lotus when they're not in bloom. Lily leaves float on top of the water, and don't form complete cirles; they look more like pie charts. There are a couple of different varieties of lotus at the BBG Lily Pool Terrace. There are also some pink ones blooming right now.

I recently visited BBG and took some photos of the Lily Pool Terrace as well. You can see them on Flickr via my blog.

Thanks for your beautiful pictures.

earlysnowdrop said...

Thanks for stopping by and sharing such great information. I appreciate the insight. I stopped by your blog and saw your "field trip" to the BBG. It is a great garden to visit.

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