Planting a water jug ​​in the pond: instructions

With unorthodox growth, the water jug ​​is a headache for home gardeners when planting in the garden pond. Leaves and flowers are enthroned above ground on flowing, meter-long stems. Below the surface of the water, the floating leaf plant is partly rooted in the pond floor. These instructions explain in a practical way how to properly plant your local aquatic plants. A detailed guide highlights the exemplary care from A-Z.

useful information

With shiny green, round leaves and bright yellow flowers, the sea can is reminiscent of a water lily. In fact, the native aquatic plant is one of the fever clover family with robust winter hardiness. Standing and moderately flowing waters with clean water are their territory. Wherever sea churns feel in good hands, they conquer their territory above and below the water. Flooding stems up to 150 centimeters long have numerous lush green floating leaves. In summer, yellow flowers join in from June to September. The leaf stalks usually reach to the bottom of the pond to take root there. On the underside of the leaves there are countless hydropots that are useful as busy "water drinkers". The tiny glands are incessantly filtering excess nutrients from the water and depriving annoying algae of their livelihood.
The sea can has become rare in the great outdoors. Larger deposits can still be found along the Danube and in the Upper Rhine Plain. In the rest of Central Europe, floating leaf plants have become so rare that they are under nature protection. One more reason for the environmentally conscious home gardener to plant at least one sea can in their private water world and thus contribute to the preservation of the charismatic pond plant.

Location and pond size

In the sunny to partially shaded location, sea churns are in top form. Under the shady conditions of a cool pond, you will look in vain for the distinctive star blossoms and shapely leaves. Plants in low-light locations cannot fulfill their useful function as natural algae killers either. Since the magnificent water beauties tend to form expansive foothills, the water surface should clearly extend beyond a mini pond. A middle pond between 5 and 15 square meters and 60 to 80 centimeters deep offers sea churns sufficient capacity for a splendid growth with an abundant flowering period.
Tip: Sea churns are great problem solvers for naturally shading a pond in full sun. The swimming sun worshipers like to catch the sunlight with their decorative leaves. Plants and animals in garden water that are less sun-loving benefit from this.

Water quality

Before you plant young sea churns, please check the water quality. The rarity value, which is worthy of protection, is not least due to an unsuitable degree of hardness and an excessively high pH value in our waters. This is how the ideal pond water should be:

• Slightly acidic to neutral pH between 6 and 7
• Soft water with a degree of hardness below 10 ° dH

Water tests that are easy to use are available in garden centers and pond accessories shops. Please carry out the inexpensive and uncomplicated test even if the water is clear and clean. The two criteria mentioned are essential for vital growth and cannot be found with the naked eye.

Soil condition

Only in combination with the right soil conditions will your water world receive the approval of a sea can. A boggy to boggy pond floor offers the rhizomes ideal framework conditions if it is at the same time rich in nutrients and has a humic structure.

plants

The best time to plant water jugs is in spring, when the pond water and the shallow water zone have completely thawed. Pre-grown young plants are mostly in the nursery pot, which is not suitable for professional planting. For this purpose, special plant baskets are available for perfect planting of pond plants. Furthermore, the practical baskets score with the advantage that they keep the growth of expansive sea cans in check. Although the native aquatic plants are used in the shallow water zone, they migrate purposefully into regions with a water depth of 80 to 100 centimeters. Repotting and planting go hand in hand when sea churns find their way into the garden pond. How to proceed in an exemplary manner step by step:

• Fill the plant basket with water plant substrate or bog soil
• Pot the young plant and plant in the middle, maintaining the previous planting depth
• Spread lime-free gravel on the substrate to protect against washout

Position the plant basket on the bottom of the shallow water zone. In this area the water is between 20 and 40 centimeters deep. Do not anchor the basket. After a transitional phase of acclimatization, the self-confident floating leaf plant looks for its favorite spot on its own. If this process is not in your mind, fix the plant basket immediately in the species-compliant water zone from a depth of 60 centimeters.

Tip: Socialize sea churns with water plants that have similar demands. Together with cattails (Typha), swamp iris (Iris pseudacorus) and pikeweed (Pontederia cordata) you create a varied and natural appearance of your water world.

Fertilize

Fertilization is rarely on the maintenance program for sea cans. The picturesque pond plant draws its nutrients from two natural sources. With long, slender rhizomes, it roots through the nutritious substrate, where continuously dead plant parts, microorganisms and excrement from fish are transformed into valuable humus. The undersides of the leaves, which are equipped with hydropots, extract abundant nutrients from the water in order to build up energy reserves inside the plant. Well-balanced pond water eliminates the need for a supplementary supply of nutrients, as is common practice for conventional garden perennials.
Yellowed leaves, poor growth and sparse flowers, on the other hand, indicate deficiency symptoms. In this exceptional case, the suffering sea can benefit from a special liquid fertilizer for aquatic plants. Only apply the fertilizer for a limited time in order not to trigger unwanted algal blooms. If the deficiency symptoms subside, stop the supplementary nutrient intake as soon as possible.

Cut

Planting in the escape-proof plant basket alone is not always enough to curb the vigor of sea churns. If the runners spread out on the water surface in an uncontrolled manner, note a cut back on the care plan. The good-natured cut tolerance allows every desired circumference. For larger cuts, powder them with charcoal powder or primary rock flour to disinfect them. By regularly removing dead leaves and withered flowers, the floating beauty always shines with a well-groomed appearance.

Overwinter

Before the onset of winter, sea churns get rid of their leaves and retreat to the pond floor. Thanks to hardy rhizomes, the native aquatic plants survive the cold season unscathed. Only in spring do the long, thin leaf stalks first sprout from the rhizome. Floating leaves only sprout just before the flowering period begins in June. This process does not require special winter storage precautions. So that the dead leaf mass does not impair the natural equilibrium in the water, you should remove dead leaves regularly.

Multiply

The propagation of sea churns succeeds equally according to the generative and vegetative method. Just one specimen in the water is enough to breed a whole host of splendid offspring. Both approaches are explained in more detail below.

sowing

If you are aiming for a larger number of new sea churns, sowing seeds is a good option. Long guesswork about the final result is superfluous in this case, since it is a pure species and not a combination of different parent plants. In autumn, a Nymphoides peltata releases numerous ciliate seeds that have ripened in fruit capsules under water. Each seed is equipped with small air chambers so that it can float on the surface of the water. You can choose to collect the seeds or purchase them from specialist retailers. This is how the sowing works:

• Fill the watertight seed tray with bog soil or low-lime potting soil
• Press the seeds 1 to 2 cm deep into the substrate at a short distance and sieve them with potting soil
• Press the substrate lightly with a flat board
• Fill in lime-free water up to 1 cm above the surface of the earth
• Set up in the partially shaded location at 18 to 22 degrees Celsius
• Check the water level in the bowl regularly and top it up if necessary

Germination begins within two to four weeks, recognizable as green leaf tips breaking through the earth. If your pupils grow above the surface of the water, it is time to separate them in a potty with aquatic plant soil. Place the pots in a bowl filled with soft water until the planting time begins in spring.
If seeds refuse to germinate, a cold stimulus triggers growth. To do this, place the seeds on the wintry balcony for four to six weeks, protected by a transparent cover. In regions with severe winters, subject the seeds in the refrigerator's vegetable compartment to the necessary cold stimulus. At 0 to 4 degrees Celsius, the cotyledons are not long in coming.

division

The multiplication of sea cans is more uncomplicated via the path of division. The best time is in spring, after the main frost period has ended. Take the mother plant and the plant basket out of the water. Then you take the rhizome in your hand to remove soil, stones and dead roots. Use a spade, knife or scissors to divide the cleaned root stock into several segments with a length of 10 to 20 centimeters. Now you can plant each section in a separate plant basket and put it in the water at the desired location.

Diseases and pests

As a rule, you will not have to complain about illnesses at a sea churn. Among the pests, water lily aphids (Rhopalosiphum nymphaea) brazenly target other floating leaf plants and do not spare sea churns either. The infestation can be recognized by light spots on the leaves and curled leaf edges as a result of suction damage. Of course, the lice themselves are more noticeable than the symptoms. The 1-2 mm small, black to dark green insects colonize leaves and stems in hosts. Fatally, aphids excrete honeydew, which serves as a target for blackening fungi and clogs the leaf pores. Combating with chemical insecticides is prohibited due to the risk to fish and microorganisms in the pond. However, you are not completely defenseless against the lice invasion.
How to act correctly:

• Spray off affected parts of the plant with a sharp jet of water
• Treat the top and bottom of the leaves
• Remove the lice from accessible leaves
• Repeat control measures daily over a period of one week

Sea can gardeners report good success with the use of horsetail broth. You can purchase the purely natural product as a ready-made solution from specialist retailers or you can produce it yourself. Apply the spray mixture every 5 to 10 days until no more aphids can be seen.