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Up-Coming Events
Learn to Build Willow Furniture!
June 11 at Hughes Water Gardens
If you love the look of Willow Furniture, why not learn to make your own? Brian Phillips, also know as the "The Twig Man" will take you through a step by step process allowing your creative juices to flow into a work that is unique to you! The class is on June 11 and is 6-8 hrs long. When you finish the class you will have your very own willow furniture that you can proudly show others.
The cost for materials and instruction for the day is only $125.00
Phone: 503-897-7387
Email:
For information click here
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Waterlily Festival
&
Art Show
July 23rd - 31st 2011
Please join us at Hughes Water Gardens for our Annual Waterlily Festival and Invitational Art Show.
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Tropical Water Lilies
 | Red Flare
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Tropical water lilies add color, fragrance and pizzazz to your Pond. They come in a variety of bold colors and sizes, there is nothing more dramatic.
Much like a Fuchsia basket in our area most people treat Tropical Water lilies as annuals. Their summer performance is like no other and most purchase them year after year.
Tropical lilies hold their flowers well above the water surface and have a variety of leaf sizes and variegation. Some leaves are green and some are spotted with maroon. Some even have "toothed" leaf edges.
At Hughes, we have both day blooming and night blooming tropical water lilies.
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Tinkerbelle's Tips
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Tinkerbelle Hughes |
Test Your Pond for
Water Quality
In order for fish to thrive, water conditions in the pond need to be the same or very similar to those found in nature. Improper levels can cause fish stress, which can lead to illness and death. It can also lead to unhealthy plants.
Test your pond water at least once a month. Choose a kit that does P.H. Nitrate, Nitrite Carbonate Hardness and General Hardness, and Ammonia.
Hughes Water Gardens has a good selection of test kits on hand.
To shop online for pond kits click here |
June Classes
June 04, Saturday
10 am
Planting Around Your Pond
June 11, Saturday
10 am
Building Ponds & Waterfalls
June 18, Saturday
10 am
Pondless Waterfalls and Creeks
June 19, Sunday
1 pm
Pondless Urns & Bubbling Rocks
June 25, Saturday
10 am
Building Ponds & Waterfalls
All classes are free and 1 to 2 hours long.
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Our Mailing Address
25289 SW Stafford Rd, Tualatin, OR 97062
Spring and Summer Hours
Monday - Saturday
9 to 6
Sunday
10 to 5
Our Telephone
503-638-1709
Copyright (C) 2008 Hughes Water Gardens. All rights reserved
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The Lovely Lotus
The Lotus is the quintessential water plant. In many cultures the lotus represents "enlightenment," with its ability to rise above the mud and become a beautiful flower. Cultures around the world have long revered the lotus for its religious, medicinal and nutritional value.
The breathtaking lotus flowers are followed by an interesting, honeycomb seed pod. The beautiful bluish leaves stand far above the water like spinning saucers. Beads of water collect on the shallow, bowled leaves and roll around like mercury in the reflecting sunlight.
Lotus vary in size from miniature to a huge standard size, which can stand 6-7 feet above the water's surface. The flowers open in mid-morning and close in the mid-afternoon. Each flower lasts three days before the petals fall away, revealing a distinctive seed pod. The pods continue to grow another 6 weeks until they have doubled in size. The flowers blend shades of white, pink, red and yellow.
 To get the plants off to the best start, we do not release our lotus for sale until they are well established and thriving - usually around mid-June. When you take your plant home, please follow the care instruction hand out - provided at the nursery or follow the link below - to ensure the continued health of the plant:
If your pond temperatures stay low in the summer, try your lotus in waterbowls where the water temperature is higher. Lotus can be a challenge but they are worth it.
For more on The Lotus click here
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"Where Are The Victoria Water Lilies"
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May 18 - in an aquarium |
A common question the staff at Hughes Water Gardens get in the spring is "Where are the Victoria Water Lilies, are you not growing them anymore?" The answer is the yes we will always have The Victories.
The Victoria Lily, an annual, is started from seed in the spring in an aquarium, and in May they are just bigger than a quarter - which makes the plant even more astonishing considering in July each leaf is already 4 to 5' in diameter.
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Mid-July |
The spectacular Victoria Water Lily have several more distinguishing characteristics. They bloom at night, however if the day is overcast you may see them open in the afternoon and the blooms remain open until early morning. Their 12" fragrant blooms last only 2 days and three evenings and change color from white the first night to pink or red the second and third.
Victoria's have huge, pie plate shaped leaves with raised edges. The undersides of the pads have pronounced veining and incredibly sharp spines (the spines are also on the stems and exterior of the buds). The pads can supportan amazing amount of weight. The photo above shows Dave's grandson sitting on the Victoria's leaf.
The Victoria Water Lilies are on display at Hughes in the summer and fall in the tropical water plant greenhouse. To see these amazing plants in their prime, visit the nursery in July and August.
Hughes Water Garden holds its Waterlily Festival and Art Show every year during the last week of July. This festival includes our popular evening event. This evening event allows people to view the dramatic and rare Victoria Water Lilies when they are blooming (in the evening) and talk to Hughes head plant propagator Dave Brigante about our showpiece plant.
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Great Tropical Plants for your Pond
The Incredible Cannas
 Cannas are not only prized for there show-stopping tropical foliage, many also make wonderful water plants. They not only look beautiful at the end of summer when other plants are fading, they also bloom for a long period of time.
Hughes Water Gardens' customers often ask the question "Can all Cannas go in water?" There is a difference between true water cannas and terrestrial cannas. True water cannas can be in water all season and can be placed in deeper amounts of water. However, many, but not all terrestrial cannas can be adapted to water during the sum mer and taken out during the winter months.
Canna leaves are large, paddle shaped and very bold. They range in color from blue-green to dark purple and many have colorful stripes. There is also a wide range of colorful blooms to choose from. The pallet of choices are creams, reds, oranges, yellows and two tone combinations. Cannas bloom longer if in water. The blooms are similar to gladiolas and rebloom all summer especially if you remove the faded flowers.
Cannas grow well in saturated soil or with water over their crowns from 1" to 12" - this varies with the different canna varieties. Full sun is best for cannas, however many will grow in part-sun but the colorful leaves may fade. The height varies greatly between varieties ranging from 2 to 9 feet and 2 to 6 feet wide.
Cannas are hardy from 7 - 11 depending on the variety of canna. Because of our wet winters they need some winter protection. In our mild climate you can often pull your cannas from the pond and bury the pot in your garden. Be sure and mulch the plant with dried leaves 1 to 3 feet. Another option is to bring the plant indoors. You can treat them as a house plant or move them to a garage, basement or other frost free area. When the plant goes dormant remove the dead foliage. Water sparingly throughout the winter, keeping it moist but not soggy.
Cannas make a great focal point in your pond or are wonderful in a waterbowl with just fairy moss as an accent. weather you use them in the pond or the garden they add drama wherever they grow.
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