Returned to Lotus after a difficult first attempt

My first attempt at Lotus failed — frost damage on tender varieties left in shallow water got hold of it and I didn't know what I was looking at until it was too late. I left it alone for a year before trying again.

The second attempt, with proper attention to removing dying foliage in autumn before it rots and reduces water quality, has been completely different. It's now thriving in a stream edge or bog garden and extraordinary flower forms rising above or floating on the water is on full display. foliage die-back and pond tidying in autumn this year was a genuine reward for starting again. If you failed first time, the plant isn't the problem — the conditions probably were.