Floaters vary according to planting depth and how much surface area of water they need. Roughly half a pond's surface should be covered with plants. These luxuriant flowers are skirted by beautiful, broad-leaved, often mottled foliage that provides shade and cover for fish. Water lilies need calm water, and most require at least four to six hours of sun a day. Blossoms of hardy varieties float on the surface, opening in the morning and closing by mid- to late afternoon.
Cultivars come in white, pink, salmon, red and yellow, and fully double forms resemble peonies.
Hardy water lilies can overwinter even in Zone 3 if the rootstock stays below the ice. Often heavily fragrant, the blossoms stand well above the surface of the water. Tropicals bloom larger, brighter, and more profusely than hardy water lilies, and some come in nearly mystical shades of blue and lavender. Symbol of the sacred for Hindus, this magnificent plant produces huge, fragrant blossoms in shades of pink, coral, white, red, yellow and muted combinations. The flowers bloom on stalks that soar from one to three feet above the water's surface.