Nelumbo Pygmaea Cream - Sacred Lotus

The Nelumbo 'Pygmaea Cream' is a dwarf selection of the sacred lotus that charms with its crumpled silk flowers in peach cream colour. This compact variety is particularly suitable for ornamenting pots and small ponds. Lower and less vigorous than the usual Indian Lotus, it has beautiful round floating leaves and blooms for long weeks in summer. This dwarf lotus is hardy if its rhizome doesn't freeze. It can also be taken out of the water in autumn and stored away from frost, in slightly moist mud.

The Lotus 'Pygmaea Cream' is a perennial plant from the Nelumbonaceae family. It is a dwarf selection of the sacred lotus. It is an aquatic plant whose foliage and flower rise above the water unlike water lilies. The original range of the species, Nelumbo nucifera, includes Southeast Asia and Northern Australia. In these regions, it populates large ponds and canals filled with muddy water, from which it stands out majestically.

The 'Pygmaea Cream' variety develops, from spring onwards, blue-green leaves, more or less erect, with a flat or concave surface, slightly undulated at the edges. Water droplets projected onto their surface bead up instead of spreading out due to the hydrophobic quality of the epidermis. The entire and peltate lamina, measuring between 15 and 20 cm in diameter, attaches to the very brittle rhizome by a thin spiny petiole, fixed beneath the centre of the leaf. The plant will rise to approximately 55 cm above the water surface. Flowering begins in June-July and extends into autumn. The flowers, with crumpled texture, measuring 10 cm in diameter, are solitary. They persist for several days before withering and will be replaced by new flower buds. This flowering is followed by the formation of highly decorative fruits shaped like a watering can with small holes through which the seeds escape when ripe. It is often used in the making of dried bouquets and contains numerous seeds that will eventually sink and germinate in the mud.

The Dwarf Lotus is ideal for small water plants and adapts to cultivation in various watertight containers that will decorate the terrace or balcony. The number of flowers produced depends on the size of the cultivation container. In a container with a diameter of 30 cm, the plant will produce between 3 and 8 flowers, 8 to 15 flowers in a 50 cm container, and up to 25 in a basin or barrel with an 80 cm diameter.

Lotus and water lilies will be the main attraction of your pond plantings. Most of them bloom from spring to early autumn. The lotus is also an essential plant for maintaining the balance of a garden pond, as it contributes to the oxygenation of the water. Its leaves will provide shade and shelter for your fish, which in return will protect them from predatory insects such as aphids.

The entire plant is edible. The seeds are consumed candied, and the rhizome is a nourishing starch. The yellow stamens are used to flavour tea in Vietnam. The rhizome and seeds are also used in Chinese cosmetics to fight against ageing, as well as in medicine and perfumery.

The perfection of the flower and fruit of the sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) makes this aquatic plant a symbol of purity in a number of religions. In Buddhism, it derives its sacred character from the fact that Buddha is said to have appeared floating on its leaf. In Hinduism, it is perceived as the cradle of the universe.