A pond of water-lilies is a possibility for anyone who can give two square feet of water surface in a sunny spot, and it should be near at hand so that you can easily see the flowers when they are at their best. All the hardy water-lilies must be enjoyed in the morning or early afternoon; for the flowers close at specific times for each kind, varying from noon to four, or at the latest five, o’clock. The tender kinds fall within two distinct classes, there being both day bloomers and night bloomers.
Half a barrel will make a thoroughly practical” lily-pond” for the smallest garden! Cut this to a depth of eighteen inches, fill two-thirds with a rich, heavy soil, and sink so that the bottom is three inches below the level of the ground, for though the leaves and flowers love sunshine, the black ooze in which the roots naturally live is always cool.
But one need not stop here. Only space and inclination limit the number of barrels that may be utilized for this purpose. Arrange them so that the whole will form a figure of irregular outline and leave some space between the individual barrels. These spaces, perhaps a foot to eighteen inches wide, offer situations well suited to the needs of a variety of water-loving plants, such as forget-menots, Lysimachia and others, which will form a framework to set off the beauties of the water-lilies.
Not all the barrels need contain waterlilies, however. One or two may be devoted to other plants such as water hyacinths, water poppies and the like, while taller plants, like Cyperus Papyrus and nelumbiums tend to relieve the flatness necessarily incident to a water garden. The latter, however, grow quite tall and can be used most effectively in large gardens; and they also look best in masses.
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