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 | | From: | Alan Silver | | Subject: | Can I grow a lotus in the UK? From 15 year-old seeds? | | Date: | Thu, 20 Jan 2005 18:15:28 +0000 |
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 | Hello,
My wife was clearing out a drawer the other day, and she came across a
package containing some lotus seeds that I was given by someone I met
about 15 years ago. I put them away, intending to find out how to grow
them one day and never did ;-)
Anyway, so I have two basic questions...
1) Will 15 year-old seeds be any good? I've looked at quite a few sites
about growing these plants and it seems that they will last a long time,
but I haven't seen any real numbers. This isn't such a huge question as
I can simply try them and see if anything happens. If not, I've only
lost a bit of water ;-)
2) More to the point, I live in the sun-drenched tropics of North West
England (ahem). Most of the sites I've seen explaining how to grow lotus
seem to be from people living in warm climates. It's very cold and wet
here at the moment, and I don't have a pond anyway!! Can these plants be
grown successfully indoors, and if so, do I need anything special for
them? One site I saw said they need long periods of intense light, which
doesn't sound like England in the winter!! Even in the summer we don't
get intense sunlight, in fact we count ourselves lucky if we get *any*
sunlight!!
So, can I grow them? TIA for any help
--
Alan Silver
(anything added below this line is nothing to do with me)
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| | From: | Lilly | | Subject: | Re: Can I grow a lotus in the UK? From 15 year-old seeds? | | Date: | 20 Jan 2005 10:37:44 -0800 |
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| Looks like you can. Quick Google search reveals;
Centuries-old lotus seeds germinated by UCLA scientists
UCLA scientists germinated lotus seeds nearly 500 years old from lotus
fruits recovered
from a lotus lake in China - the first time new plants have been ...
www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/ 2002-02/uoc--cls022102.php - 8k -
Cached - Similar pages
Centuries-old lotus seeds germinated by UCLA scientists
.... An international team led by UCLA scientists germinated lotus seeds
nearly 500 years
old from lotus fruits recovered from an ancient lotus lake in
northeastern ...
www.scienceblog.com/community/ older/2002/C/20025556.html - 8k - Cached
- Similar pages
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| | From: | kathy | | Subject: | Re: Can I grow a lotus in the UK? From 15 year-old seeds? | | Date: | 20 Jan 2005 11:32:22 -0800 |
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| Found a faq regarding sunlight
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Q: How much sunlight does a lotus need to bloom?
A:
A lotus will flower in six hours or more direct sunlight. More sunlight
means more flowering and stronger stems for leaves and flowers. Lower
sunlight duration makes stems weak, allowing leaves to fall over
easily. Flowering is dependent upon adequate fertilization.
So it looks like you can get the seeds to sprout and it will be an
experiment to see if they will bloom in England's summer.
Let us know what happens!
kathy
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| | From: | Derek Broughton | | Subject: | Re: Can I grow a lotus in the UK? From 15 year-old seeds? | | Date: | Fri, 21 Jan 2005 13:17:32 -0400 |
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| Alan Silver wrote:
> 1) Will 15 year-old seeds be any good? I've looked at quite a few sites
> about growing these plants and it seems that they will last a long time,
> but I haven't seen any real numbers. This isn't such a huge question as
> I can simply try them and see if anything happens. If not, I've only
> lost a bit of water ;-)
Millenia? LOL. 15 years isn't enough for them to even be considered
suspect!
> 2) More to the point, I live in the sun-drenched tropics of North West
> England (ahem).
Lovely place that. Lived a few years in Whitehaven. I don't remember there
being any sun...
> Most of the sites I've seen explaining how to grow lotus
> seem to be from people living in warm climates. It's very cold and wet
> here at the moment, and I don't have a pond anyway!! Can these plants be
> grown successfully indoors, and if so, do I need anything special for
> them? One site I saw said they need long periods of intense light, which
> doesn't sound like England in the winter!! Even in the summer we don't
> get intense sunlight, in fact we count ourselves lucky if we get *any*
> sunlight!!
They definitely won't grow in England in the winter. They're not tropicals,
though, and they grew in _my_ climate in Ontario, Canada - outside year
round - so you can definitely raise them. Indoors? Probably not. You
need at least a half-barrel outside.
--
derek
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| | From: | ~ jan JJsPond.us | | Subject: | Re: Can I grow a lotus in the UK? From 15 year-old seeds? | | Date: | Fri, 21 Jan 2005 10:41:00 -0800 |
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| >On Fri, 21 Jan 2005 13:17:32 -0400, Derek Broughton wrote:
>> 1) Will 15 year-old seeds be any good? >
>They definitely won't grow in England in the winter. They're not tropicals,
>though, and they grew in _my_ climate in Ontario, Canada - outside year
>round - so you can definitely raise them. Indoors? Probably not. You
>need at least a half-barrel outside.
But..... she could get them started inside to transfer them out come
spring. :o) I've found the black plastic drip pans for oil, excellent and
reasonably pricee to start lotus tubers in, why not seeds? ~ jan
~Power to the Porg, Flow On!~
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