High Cotton Lotus (Bare Root)

Nelumbo nucifera — large pond lotus, shipped as a dormant lotus tuber.

The Old South Series. Loaded with flowers. Pure white perfection. My great-granddaddy planted 5 acres of cotton every year back in the late 1800's. He would hitch his plow behind his mule and open row after row, dropping in seeds one at a time and praying that enough rain came at the right time and that the boll weevils didn't kill it before it was waist-high and opening into big, fluffy balls of cotton. If the farmers reached pickin' time with a good crop the old saying was, "we are in high cotton." Here in the South that phrase still means that everything is better than good!

Our 'High Cotton' is named to honor all those hard working men and women who paved the way for us today. This lovely new lotus was grown from random seed that was a gift from Dr. Daike Tian. The outer petals are wide and make a perfect plate to hold the more narrow curled petals on the inside. Particularly bright gold stamen surround a lime green receptacle to make this new lotus even more unique.

Special thanks to Yann Mumber for the lovely picture!

At a glance

• Flower type: Multi-petal, more than 50 petals
• Plant height: Tall, 48" and taller
• Container: 20" and wider, 12"-18" deep

As a large pond lotus, this one settles at 12 to 24 inches of water over the crown once established — start a new tuber under 2 to 4 inches and raise the level as it pushes aerial leaves, with the growing tip left uncovered. Pot size, soil and the rest of the method are in the lotus planting instructions.

Browse more white lotus or see every large pond lotus we carry.