krazykungfu Posted April 4, 2011 Here's the beauty: Or is this another Nymphaea or such? There were orange ones too... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 planthelper Posted April 4, 2011 yes, you are right! i never have seen orange flowers, but the pink one's could look maybe more orange at times (maybe covered with pollen). this is a nice find, you can use the pink ones aswell, it's best to collect unopend flowers, nice pic's ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 Zaka Posted April 5, 2011 Irie, Here the blue flower open in the day & the pink open in the night... Or is it the other way round??? Respect, Z Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 krazykungfu Posted April 5, 2011 (edited) Cheers PH - those photo's took patience, my camera doesn't like close up shots! The other ones looked a golden colour heading toward orange in the light I was in - I shall have a better look next time and maybe grab one .... Both colours were open at the time I was there as well Definitely going back to study these things a little more ;) EDIT: does anyone know how long the flowers hang around? i.e. do I have to get back there quickly or have I got time on my side? Cheers Edited April 5, 2011 by krazykungfu Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 planthelper Posted April 6, 2011 i roughly guess they will flower still for another month or so, but if the weather turns cold they will stopp flowering right away almost. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 DarkSpark Posted April 8, 2011 Truth be told i have found that we keep them pretty much all year here on the gold coast with he exception of the 4-8 coldest weeks. But not as many will flower. I have found the blue to be far more common but would love to try and taste some of the pink as i haven't done so as yet. I love the way the flowers change color as time goes on its beautiful too see a pond of all varied color flowers. I have found some ponds here that are literally covered in them ! From experience they make a beautiful smoking admixture with a sweet ever so faintly aniseed like flavor. considering i hate licorice they taste wonderful. and planthelper, do you mean flowers that haven't opened yet at all ? like fresh buds ? is there a reason i.e. sun degrades the active chemicals or something ? if only they grew closer to the banks instead of right out in the middle ! and the seedy looking ponds they grow in i dont trust for swimming. Fortunately my pond has 50M tall clumping bamboo next to it so i can easily make a hook ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 planthelper Posted April 10, 2011 yep, i mean flowers which have never opend, they have still all there pollen and the color of the flower is not bleached yet, so the dried material, looks much more attractive. they look better, so i asume they are better.... a bamboo pole with a hook is good, but give other designs apart from hooks or sickles a go aswell, i think strong wire in shape of a spiral was good, as you can pick up the flower with it aswell. a small kid's blow up boat comes handy, to hand pick them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 random Posted April 11, 2011 Probably a stupid question but do the flower buds develop under water? I saw a plant yesterday in the botanic gardens and there was a bud totally immersed about 10cm underwater. Got my first sniff of a flower though which was nice, except I forgot to hold my hair back when I leant over and it got wet in the pond lol. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 mescalito Posted April 11, 2011 One of the finest fragrances... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 planter Posted April 11, 2011 the color is a little light on it. its hard to tell just by the flower which species it is but thats certainly a Nymphaea sp. but it may be capensis or nouchali or some random hybrid of who knows what. most tropical water lilies have some sort of activity though ime. the flowers come up from under the water for one day, and iirc are staminate the first day, then the close up at night and submerge and then come up again the next day but then are pistillate (the stamens release pollen on the first day, and then the pistils receive on the second day). some species are night blooming though and do the opposite, bloom at night and close up during the day. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 Amazonian Posted April 12, 2011 (edited) Here's a Youtube clip that explains why water lilies open and close their flowers. This clip is on the Giant Water Lilly but i believe it would be for similar reasons in the smaller varieties. Skip up to about the 2 minute mark . Edited April 12, 2011 by Amazonian Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 random Posted April 12, 2011 Great info, planter and Amazonian, thanks for sharing, very interesting and mysterious, these beautiful water lilies! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 planter Posted April 12, 2011 (edited) ah yea i had it mixed up, pistillate then staminate! Edited April 12, 2011 by planter Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 DarkSpark Posted April 18, 2011 yep, i mean flowers which have never opend, they have still all there pollen and the color of the flower is not bleached yet, so the dried material, looks much more attractive. they look better, so i asume they are better.... a bamboo pole with a hook is good, but give other designs apart from hooks or sickles a go aswell, i think strong wire in shape of a spiral was good, as you can pick up the flower with it aswell. a small kid's blow up boat comes handy, to hand pick them. Yeah i have been thinking along the lines of the inflatable boat i just need to find a clearer pond, with all the trees overhanging this one i worry about puncturing and sinking. I can swim really well but this thing is covered in some other type of weedy water plant that is completely taking over and you cant even see the water so i would probably get tangled and drown :S One of the finest fragrances... i agree, and the flavor is really nice too. I would love to get some actually to see if it would combat the taste of Smoking Calea. Better get to it before they stop coming up, if the bloody rain would stop. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Here's the beauty:
Or is this another Nymphaea or such? There were orange ones too...
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