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re: lotus lily



Lotus lilies are really just waterlillies.  When water lillies first sprout 
from the bulb they send up leaves that are completely submerged (depending 
upon the dsepth of the water in which they grow.  The plant will continue to 
send up leaves until they reach the surface of the water.  The structure of 
a waterlilly leaf is such that it is composed of almost 85% "airspaces" (the 
technical term for this type of anatomy is called aerenchyma, or something 
like that) wich enable the leaf to float and get the most light that it 
possibly can.  The leaves can reach almost three feet when planted very 
deeply.  Enjoy trhem on the surface but be sure to prune because they will 
shade everyone else out in the tank.  If you are lucky you might even get 
them to flower for you!!!


    John Davis (marooned in aggieland)
    Department of Biology
    http://http.tamu.edu:8000/~jmd9261
    jdavis at bio_tamu.edu
    jmd9261 at tam2000_tamu.edu
  
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