Fertilizing Aquatic Plants

Keep Your Aquatic Plants Blooming and Looking Great All Summer!

Do your aquatic plants need to be fertilized?

Most likely no.

But.... boy, if you fertilize them, you will be rewarded!

Here's an example...

Look at the photo above.  These six little plants turned into this beautiful aquatic pot two months later -- May to July! (We do this a lot at Cool Ponds and at home too.  Take a hole-less pot, put aquatic plants in it and "ta-da" you have a beautiful pot that only will need occasional water.)

How about these water lilies in the photo below …

This is a new pond, and the lilies were planted this spring with slow-release fertilizer. (By the way the lilies are all in fabric bags to keep them contained because they would eventually fill this pond).  The fertilizer helps them grow, but mainly it's to encourage them to BLOOM!  They have given us quite a show.

So what type of fertilizer should be used and how often?

I'm a less work, more enjoyment kind of girl, so I use a slow-release, once-a-year fertilizer whenever possible.  If you are re-potting a plant, the granular is great -- just mix it in with the soil.  If you just need to fertilize an already potted plant, use a fertilizer capsule.  So, so easy! Add it once and you are good for the entire season!!!

If you want a short term fertilizer, use regular pond tabs.  They will last about a month or so.  These are great for marginal (shallow water) plants in the spring.  They don't need a lot of fertilizer -- you want them to use the nutrients in the pond! But it's good to give them a little boost in a new pond or in the spring just to get them growing and blooming.

When is a good time to fertilize aquatic plants? 

Spring is best, but you can fertilize them for good results any time during the summer.  I would recommend not fertilizing when the water begins to cool down -- less bang for your buck, and it's time for hardy plants to start to go dormant.  Tropical plants can be fertilized any time because they are going to keep growing until the water cools and they die off or you bring them inside.

A little effort fertilizing your aquatics goes a long way for their health and beauty!  Try it and you will see!

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