Nelumbo Gold & Resplendence - Dwarf lotus

Nelumbo nucifera ‘Gold & Resplendence’ is a sought-after dwarf lotus prized for its clear and abundant flowering. This variety produces large, very double flowers of a very pale yellow, with a centre featuring green petaloids. Held above round, upright foliage, these flowers retain all the nobility of the sacred lotus, in a format better suited to a terrace or a small pond.

The sacred lotus belongs to the Nelumbonaceae family. The species Nelumbo nucifera is a rhizomatous aquatic perennial, native to a vast area ranging from temperate and tropical Asia to northern Australia, rooted in mud or a clay substrate. Its leaves and flowers emerge distinctly above the water, whereas water lilies most often bear floating foliage. The laminae are peltate, almost circular, with a waxy, hydrophobic surface: the famous "lotus effect" that causes water to bead up and roll off without wetting the leaf.

'Gold & Resplendence’, also found under the spelling 'Gold and Resplendence’, is presented as a small lotus, classified among the small to medium cultivars. It is among the Chinese introductions disseminated by Bergen Water Gardens in 2013. Its height varies from 45 to 60 cm. The plant develops compact, upright foliage, less exuberant large lotus varieties. Its flower is very double, comprising more than 50 petals, and displays a very light yellow colour; the outer petals frame green petaloids, giving the flower a chartreuse-ivory tone depending on the age of the bloom. Flowering spreads from July to September. Each flower opens in the morning and closes in the evening for about three days. Fruit set is random in this cultivar. In autumn, the foliage yellows and then disappears, while the rhizome enters dormancy.

'Gold & Resplendence’ will be the centrepiece of a small aquatic scene. It is perfect for a terrace, courtyard, patio, or urban garden. It can be combined with a few low-vigour marginal plants or with dwarf water lilies to vary the forms. Like other lotus, it contributes to pond life by partially shading the water and creating a more welcoming medium for small aquatic fauna.
In winter, the rhizome must be protected from frost: in a sufficiently deep body of water, the container can remain submerged; in a small tub exposed to the cold, it is preferable to shelter it in a frost-free location.