Nymphaea mexicana
Mexican water lily ( Nymphaea mexicana )
The Mexican water lily: appointed ( Nymphaea mexicana, Syn Nymphaea flava Leitner, Castalia flava ( Leitner ) Greene), and yellow water lily ( English common name Mexican Waterlily, Yellow Waterlily or Banana Waterlily ), is a plant of the family Nymphaeaceae ( Nymphaeaceae ). It is native to Mexico and the southern United States.
Description
The Mexican water lily is a perennial herbaceous plant. This water plant forms a straight, up to 30 cm long, erect in the river bottom rhizome. These water lilies not multiply like other species of this group by side shoots on the rhizome, but it is up to 1 m long streamers ( stolons ). At its end is a new plant or banana-shaped " wintering rung ". Therefore, the English name Banana Waterlily.
The leaves are long-petiolate. The shield-shaped ( peltate ) leaf blade is ovate to rounded and has a dark green color with reddish brown spots. The leaf margin is serrated irregular.
The yellow and individually standing above the water up to 15 cm, hermaphroditic flowers have a diameter of about 8 to 11 cm. The four free sepals are tinged with yellowish green, often reddish. The twelve to 30 free petals are yellow. The approximately 50 to 60 free, fertile stamens are yellow.
The spherical seed have a diameter of about 5 mm.
The species Nymphaea mexicana ' Cape Canaveral ' (Nymphaea mexicana canaveraliensis f ) is larger in all parts, that is, the leaves have a diameter of up to 23 cm and flowering 15 to 20 cm. They also blossomed into a more intense yellow.
The Mexican water lily is not as often claimed a tropical water lily, but is one of the hardy water lilies ( subgenus: Nymphaea ) to which the white water lily (Nymphaea alba ) is one ( see the diagram " pedigree Nymphaeaceae "). For this reason, it can also be used for crossing with other hardy water lilies, which is not possible on the current state of the experts with the "real " tropical water lilies. Nevertheless, it is not hardy in our latitudes.
The natural hybrid Nymphaea odorata with is called Nymphaea × thiona DBWard.
Distribution and habitat
The Mexican water lily is found in Mexico and southern parts of the United States.
The occurrence of the species Nymphaea mexicana ' Cape Canaveral ' limited exclusively to Florida. There she was discovered by Frase 1958 on the NASA site at Cape Canaveral.
Nymphaea mexicana grows usually in a water depth of about 30 to 40 centimeters.
More images
Mexican water lily ( Nymphaea mexicana ):
Swell
- Description in the Flora of North America. (English )