Chromatella Yellow Water Lily

Chromatella Yellow Water Lily (Nymphaea 'Marliacea Chromatella') has been the standard yellow hardy water lily since the 1880s, and it has kept that place by being dependable. Soft canary-yellow, cup-shaped flowers with golden stamens sit at the surface among olive pads mottled bronze and maroon, on a vigorous plant that spreads 1.2 to 1.5m.

Why you'll love it

• A proven performer. More than a century in ponds around the world has shown it to flower reliably year after year.
• Clear, soft yellow. The semi-double cups are a gentle canary shade that reads well from a distance and never looks harsh.
• Copes with a little shade. It flowers in less sun than most hardy lilies, which helps in gardens with overhanging trees or part-day shade.
• Marbled foliage. Young pads are heavily marked in bronze-maroon, fading to olive as they mature.
• Vigorous cover. It shades a good area of water, which keeps a pond cooler and clearer through summer.

Where it works best

Medium and large ponds. One plant covers 1.2 to 1.5m of surface. Most home ponds need a single plant, or two at most.

Part-shaded ponds. Where a pond gets sun for only part of the day, this is the yellow to try first.

Dams. Plant 1.5m apart in the shallows for a band of yellow from spring to autumn.

Growing Chromatella Yellow Water Lily in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun gives the most flowers, and it still performs with four to five hours where others sulk. It suits subtropical, warm temperate, cool temperate and Mediterranean gardens.

Soil and planting depth. Use a broad, shallow pot of heavy loam with gravel on top, and plant the rhizome with its tip exposed. It grows with 30 to 80cm of water over the crown. Start a new plant at the shallow end of that range. Still water is essential, well away from any splash or current.

Water and feed. Feed with slow-release fertiliser tablets pressed into the soil in spring and midsummer. A vigorous lily like this one shows hunger quickly as smaller pads and fewer flowers.

Pruning and winter. Remove old pads and finished flowers by snapping the stalk low down. It is dormant in winter and reshoots as the water warms. Because it grows strongly, divide it every three years in spring.

What to expect when it arrives

We sell Chromatella in 200mm pots, sold singly. A lily this vigorous gives a lot of cover: one or two fill a small pond, and a dam or a number of ponds takes more. Plan for that. Plants arrive potted and damp, not submerged, and should be set into water promptly. Expect some travel-worn pads, which the plant soon replaces, and few pads at all on plants sent while dormant. Not every size is held by our growers year round, which means a size may show as on backorder now and then. If you order a backorder size, we confirm it with you before anything ships.

Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• The best water plants for garden ponds in Australia
• More flowering plants
• Frost hardy plants for cold gardens

Common questions

Will it flower in part shade?

Better than most hardy lilies. Four to five hours of sun is usually enough for a steady show, though full sun gives more flowers.

How much of the pond will it cover?

About 1.2 to 1.5m across once established. Aim to keep roughly a third of the surface open, and thin the pads if it goes beyond that.

What happens to it in winter?

The pads die back and the rhizome rests on the bottom. Leave it in place. New leaves rise in spring without any help.