Hardy and frost-sensitive varieties

Hardy water lily species

There are some water lilies that can easily spend the winter outdoors and are not or rarely damaged in the process. These well-known species tolerate frost and do not need to overwinter:

• White water lily
• Shiny water lily
• Scented water lily
• Giant water lily
• Dwarf water lily (some varieties only tolerate frost to a limited extent)

Water lilies that you should better overwinter

Many species find their home in tropical regions of the world. They are never exposed to frost there. So they couldn't adapt to it. So will they be in this country in pond cultivated, they have to be overwintered in order to survive. For example, the following species go to the tropical water lilies:

• Blue water lily
• Mexican water lily
• Cape water lily

In the case of tropical water lilies, it is advantageous to cultivate them in a bucket or aquarium. Then the stress stays with that

wintering saved or is minimized. But if you decide to cultivate such sensitive varieties in the open air, you should consider a few things.

How to overwinter tropical water lilies

Do you have tropical water lilies in your garden pond? Then you should overwinter them from the end of September. Otherwise they will freeze to death. For the winter they need enough light on the one hand and warm water (20 to 24 ° C) on the other. Aquariums, but also buckets, for example in the heated winter garden, are well suited for wintering.

Hardy water lilies can also freeze to death

If the water in the pond is not deep enough, otherwise hardy water lilies can freeze to death. The water depth should be at least 40 cm! Otherwise there is a risk that the roots of the water lilies will freeze to death.

So if your pond is too shallow, you should overwinter your water lilies. To do this, you get them out of the pond. This should best happen from November onwards. Where are you going now? For example in a bucket of water. This is placed in a cool and dark place.