Unusual Water Plant Joins Hawley Pond Flora

By Nancy K. Crevier

In what Lexington Gardens owner Tom Johnson only half-jokingly deemed, “A historic moment for Newtown,” the local businessman and horticulturist donated what may be Connecticut’s only Victoria Longwood hybrid lily for the pleasure of Newtown residents on Wednesday, July 19, at Hawley Pond.

Mr Johnson purchased the lily from a Florida grower. It is a cross between the Victoria regia and Victoria cruziana lilies native to South America and developed in 1960 through the collaboration of George H. Pring of the Missouri Botanical Garden and Dr Russell Seibert, the director of the Longwood Gardens at Kennett Square, Penn. The tropical plant arrived at Lexington Gardens on Church Hill Road via UPS, packed in layers of soaked newspaper and heavy-duty plastic bags. Lexington employees Stacy Smith and Ethan Breitling were on hand to assist Mr Johnson in delivering the lily to its new home in the north end of the pond.

Unwrapping the enormous lily was the easy part of the afternoon for the Lexington employees. Half-inch-long thorns jut out every inch or so along each of the numerous ribs and veins that line the underside of the pad, creating a painful challenge for Ms Smith and Mr Breitling. They lifted the lily from the packing box to a fabric bag filled with soil and fertilizer on a plastic raft, and then again, from the raft into the pond. Once in the water, Ms Smith dodged the thorny pads as she reached deep beneath the plant into the pond to ensure that the lily was firmly seated in the soil.

The new addition to the flora of  Hawley Pond at Newtown’s Ram Pasture is not hard to spot. Two deep green leaves edged in scarlet, and measuring approximately three feet in diameter each, float on the smooth surface of the water. A third leaf, yet unfurled, is cupped between the two large lily pads, concealing the flower bud that is preparing to bloom. The lily, according to Mr Johnson, is smaller than the full growth it could achieve in an ideal situation.

“It should bloom in about a week,” said Ms Smith, as she and Mr Breitling waded chest-deep into the murky water to plant the huge lily, “but it only blooms at night.” After 10 am, the flower closes up until night falls once again. The blossom, which starts out white and then turns pink, should bloom for about three days, said Ms Smith.

It is truly a case of “He who hesitates is lost,” when it comes to viewing the exotic addition to Hawley Pond. Because the Victoria Longwood is a tropical annual, able only to survive when water temperatures remain above 65 degrees, its days are numbered in Connecticut.

The hot, humid days of summer offer little relief for residents of Newtown, but a pause by the pond to refresh the eye is now an option, thanks to Mr Johnson.