The Wonders of Waterlilies at Naples Botanical Garden

Eleanor Zelek, the Aquatic Areas Gardener at the Naples Botanical Garden, felt very comfortable getting her sneakers in about two feet deep of muddy pond water as she turned over one of the Giants in the pond – a Victoria amazonica. She shared that her favorite part of water gardening is starting her daily routine at 6:00 AM, wading into whatever pond she works in that day. 

Giant waterlilies were given the Latin name Victoria amazonica in honor of Queen Victoria. Zelek says, “The Naples Botanical Garden is unique because we have both the largest waterlily species and the smallest in the world.”  But the Victoria waterlily, which is native to the Amazon basin of Brazil, Bolivia and Guyana, is what sparked Zelek’s passion for water gardening.

The Garden has three giant waterlilies – Victoria amazonica, Victoria cruziana and the Victoria ‘Longwood Hybrid,’ with its reddish or orange lip coloration. But all three Victorias are also the most painful to work with as their entire stem and underside are covered with very sharp spikes, which is both a defensive and offensive mechanism. The spikes on the lips of the giant platters skewer and push other plants out of their way as they grow wider and bigger in the pond. They have been known to grow six to seven feet in diameter and can hold 100 pounds of weight.

Another fascinating feature of these tropical night-blooming giants is how they are pollinated. A scarab beetle is attracted to their fragrance as their white flowers (female) open at night - the beetle flies inside the flower and is temporarily trapped. The next day, the beetle is released, and pollination is finished with the flower changing to pink (male).

In July 2022, the World’s biggest water lily species was discovered in London and was named Victoria boliviana, with leaves growing to nearly 10 feet and known to support at least 176 pounds.

According to Zelek, the root or rhizome of the waterlily – the unseen part - is the most important part of the waterlily which provides the energy for its everyday life. Zelek passed around a rhizome that has survived Hurricane Irma, Ian and Idalia and reminded us that “each time you see a beautiful waterlily floating on top – think of the main event under the water.”

Naples Botanical Garden has about 160 species of waterlilies with 500 individual plants. There is an entire ecosystem in a waterlily pond – there are animals living in the pond, such as fish and turtles, all seeking shelter under the waterlily pads. On your next visit, you might notice a perfect sandwich bite from a waterlily pad – that’s the resident turtle munching on a waterlily leaf.

“Now I am going to tell you about the smallest waterlily,” Zelek said as she passed around the Nymphaea thermarum, whose pads and flower were so small, you’d easily miss it in a water pond competing with the giants. It is also extinct in its native habitat of Rwanda, but luckily, gardens like the Naples Botanical Garden are a conservation site. Zelek said that in theory, when plants are from a different environment, their genetic makeup changes and if you were to take this plant back to Rwanda and stick it in a creek, it would not survive.

What about the Lotus plant? Is it a type of waterlily? Lotus comes from the family of Nelumbonaceae and though both plants are aquatic, the lotus can rise several feet above the pond. Zelek explained that the Lotus is filled with contradictions and though growing in a pond, they are completely hydrophobic! Their leaves repel water with a coating of thin wax-like crystals.

Once again this year, Naples Botanical Garden is part of an International Waterlily competition and is showcasing waterlily entries from around the world. Zelek is pleased to be part of the process which includes a daily count of the flowers as well as making notations on their scents, colors, pad sizes and any interesting features.