White Water Lily (Nymphaea odorata)
Bloom time: June – September
General: A freshwater perennial herb with large, round leaves and showy, fragrant blossoms.
Leaves & Twigs:
Flowers & Fruits
- The white flowers (7-12 cm in diameter) have many petals surrounding the reproductive parts. The blossoms open in the morning and close in the early afternoon; they may also close on cloudy days.
- Each blossom lasts two-to-five days. When the flowers close on the last day, the stalk ‘corkscrews,’ drawing the developing fruit below the water.
Habitat: Water lilies prefer quiet waters such as ponds, lake margins and slow streams. They root in the mucky bottoms, and grow upwards 2-2.5 m to the surface of the water.
PlantWatch Pointers: Select a patch of plants with at least 10-to-20 leaves that you can monitor each year.
- First bloom: when the first flower is open in the observed plants.
- Mid bloom: when five of the flowers are open in the observed plants.
This species is monitored in:
White water lily leaves are designed to float. Try as you might, you can’t sink them by pushing them under the water surface.