Water Lily Pond

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Water lily pond at the Zoo this past summer.

(Photo by Jesse Cohen, NZP Staff Photographer)

Margie Gibson

NZP Staff Writer

ZOOGOER

November-December 1990

Late last spring on Olmsted Walk near Panda Plaza, staff members of the Landscaping Unit created a pond that showcases the beauty of water plants and highlights several species of water lilies. It has become an oasis of peace and tranquility in one of the busiest areas of the Zoo. Lavender blossoms of water hyacinth cluster by the bank, and rocks tumble down a hill into the still water. Delicate fronds of the umbrella palm beckon passers-by to pause for a closer look. The croaks of frogs and the rustle of the breeze through ornamental grasses harmonize with bird songs and noises from nearby animals.

Three kinds of water lilies provided the focal point of the pond: the common, local variety of water lily with modest-sized pads; and two more unusual species, both with enormous round pads. The first, Eurayle ferox, native to Bangladesh, India, and China, is distinguished by its rough, textured leaves. The second, Victoriana, is a hybrid of two South American water lilies, Victoriana cruziana and Victoriana amazonica. These two species of the water lily grow in rivers from Guyana to Argentina. In 1961 Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, successfully crossbred the two species to produce a hybrid that is hardier in northern climates and that flowers more prolifically than its wild relatives. The water lily has become a favorite at botanical gardens in Europe and North America both for its gigantic size and its showy flowers.

Victoriana bears a striking resemblance to a huge, Art Deco quiche dish: Its large rough leaves are encircled by an upturned, rose-hued rim. Its leaves are truly regal in size. The leaves in the Zoo's pond were almost four feet across but they can grow to 6-1/2 feet. One of the largest leaves on record measured 7-1/2 feet across and grew here in Washington at the Bartholdi Basin Garden (near the U.S. Botanic Garden on Capitol Hill) in 1891.

The floating leaves of the victoriana conceal an incredible strength: They can easily bear the weight of an average-sized person. A look at the underside reveals the secret of their strength-the leaf is supported by a network of strong deep veins. The entire bottom is armed with prickles, which are believed to help protect the plant from being nibbled at by fish. Tiny holes, which can be seen with a magnifying glass, perforate the entire leaf surface. The holes allow rainwater to drain away and also give the plant added protection against fungi and algae.

When European botanists first became acquainted with the victoriana water lily in the early 1800s, a number of fruitless attempts were made to grow the plant from seeds. In 1846, the Kew Royal Botanic Garden in London successfully germinated seeds that had been stored in a jar of wet clay, but the plants did not mature. Finally, in l 849, seeds sent from South America to the Duke of Devonshire's gardens at Chatsworth in Derbyshire, England, germinated, matured, and produced a flower. The superintendent of the Chatsworth gardens was Sir Joseph Paxton, a noted landscape gardener. He also gained renown as a designer of hothouses. At Chatsworth, having closely studied the Victoriana water lily, he built a conservatory and a water lily house and derived the design for these structures from the intricate, veined pattern he observed on the underside of the Victoriana leaf. These conservatories, in turn, provided Paxton with the basis for the structural design of the Crystal Palace, built in London in 1851 for the Great Exhibition. Thus, the origin for the design of the Crystal Palace, a triumph of 19th century architecture and technology, is rooted in the leaf of a South American water lily.

The water lily that helped fuel Paxton's career was named Victoriana , in honor of the British monarch, Queen Victoria. Appropriately enough, the first flower that bloomed at Chatsworth was presented to the Queen.

Planting and caring for the Zoo's water lily pond has been one of Zoo gardener Bill Burke's summer projects, and he was frequently seen working in the area. Burke explained that the seedlings for the exotic varieties of water lilies were a gift from Longwood Gardens, where they were started indoors. The tiny plants arrived at the Zoo and were set outside in mid-July, when Washington temperatures rarely dip below 78 degrees. Burke planted them in a 6-x-6-foot planter filled with organic compost and soil. The planter is standing on concrete blocks stacked on the bottom of the pond. The blocks are gradually removed as the water lily grows. Burke says that warm, summer temperatures and long, sunny days, combined with the gradual lowering of the planter (which keeps the lily pads at just the right level on the water) are the keys to success with this species.

The Victoriana hybrid delighted a number of Zoo cognoscenti when, in mid-September, it produced several flowers. Its ivory flower opens in the evening and closes by midmorning of the next day. It reopens once again that evening and the color deepens to a rose-pink. The bloom exudes a sweet, pineapple-like fragrance. In its native South American habitat, Victoriana amazonica is pollinated by a beetle, but in these northern climes, the process of pollination requires a bit of human assistance. On the first night that the water lily blossomed, Burke collected grains of pollen by using a horsehair brush. The next night he dusted the pollen back onto the flower. After the flower finished blooming, Burke covered the spent blossom with cheesecloth and allowed it to sink beneath the surface of the water. Each flower produces three or four seeds, which are caught as they fall into the cheesecloth bag. After the seeds are washed, they are stored in distilled water and kept in a refrigerator until February or March, when they are brought out to sprout. Then, Burke will begin the process all over again for next year's display on the pond.