SACRED LOTUS Seeds | Nelumbo nucifera

STEP 1 - Scrape the seed with a file. Using a standard metal file, scrape the hard seed casing on the end that resembles a belly button to reveal the cream-colored core. Do not file any of the core away or else your lotus will not grow. Filing away the outer casing allows water to reach the core. 

 

STEP 2 - Place your seeds in warm water. Use a glass or transparent plastic container so that you can see when the seeds start to sprout. Fill the container with spring water between 24°C and 27°C. Do not use tap water as the chlorine will stunt growth.

 

STEP 3 - After a day of soaking, the seeds will sink to the bottom and swell to nearly twice their original size. Seeds that float are almost always infertile. Remove them or they will cloud up the water.

 

STEP 4 - Change the water daily, even after the seeds have started to sprout. When you remove the seedlings to change the water, treat the sprouts with care – they are very delicate. If they snap off your plant will die.

 

STEP 5 - Fill a 11L to 19L container with 15cm of deep soil. This size typically provides enough room for a young lotus to grow. A black plastic bucket will retain heat to better warm the seedlings. Ideally, your soil should be 2 parts clay and 1 part river sand. Do not use commercial potting mix as it is not suitable and will float to the surface once you submerge your tub in water. Make sure the container you choose does not have any drainage holes. The plant may gravitate toward the drainage hole and begin growing outside of it, causing the plant to underperform.

 

STEP 6 - Remove seedlings from water once they are 15cm long. Your seeds should start to sprout after 4 or 5 days of soaking. However, if you transfer them to the potting container to early, they will likely fail. If you wait too long, your seedlings will start to grow leaves. You can still plant them – just take care to keep the leaves free of the soil.

 

STEP 7 - Press the sprouted seeds into the soil about 10cm apart. You don't have to bury the seeds in the soil. Set them just on top, then brush a light layer of soil over them to secure them. They will take root on their own. It can be a good idea to wrap a small amount of modeling clay around the bottom of each seed to anchor it with a little weight. When you lower your container into the pond, an unanchored seed may find its way out of the soil and float up to the surface of the water.

 

STEP 8 - Lower the pot into your pond. Lotus are aquatic plants, so the soil should always have at least 5cm - 10cm of water above it. If you have taller plants, the water can be up to 46cm deep. The water should be at least 21 °C. If you live in an area with a relatively cooler climate, shallower water will provide extra warmth for your lotus. Keep fertiliser to a minimum during the first year. Allow your lotus to acclimate to its environment.

The Sacred water lotus has been used in the Orient as a medicinal herb for well over 1,500 years. All parts of the plant are used, they are sedative, astringent, cardiotonic, febrifuge, hypotensive, resolvent, stomachic, styptic, tonic and vasodilator.

 

The leaf juice is used in the treatment of diarrhoea and is decocted with liquorice (Glycyrrhiza spp) for the treatment of sunstroke.

 

A decoction of the flowers is used in the treatment of premature ejaculation. The flowers are recommended as a cardiac tonic.

 

A decoction of the floral receptacle is used in the treatment of abdominal cramps, bloody discharges. 

 

The flower stalk is haemostatic. It is used in treating bleeding gastric ulcers, excessive menstruation, post-partum haemorrhage. 

 

The stamens are used in treating urinary frequency, premature ejaculation, haemolysis, epistasis and uterine bleeding.

 

A decoction of the fruit is used in the treatment of agitation, fever, heart complaints. The seed contains several medically active constituents, including alkaloids and flavonoids. It is hypotensive, sedative and vasodilator.

 

The seed has been shown to lower cholesterol levels and to relax the smooth muscle of the uterus. It is used in the treatment of poor digestion, enteritis, chronic diarrhoea, spermatorrhoea, leucorrhoea, insomnia, palpitations.

 

The plumule and radicle are used to treat thirst in high febrile disease, hypertension, insomnia and restlessness. 

 

The root is tonic. The root starch is used in the treatment of diarrhoea, dysentery etc, a paste is applied to ringworm and other skin ailments. It is also taken internally in the treatment of haemorrhages, excessive menstruation and nosebleeds.

 

The roots are harvested in autumn or winter and dried for later use. The root nodes are used in the treatment of nasal bleeding, haemoptysis, haematuria and functional bleeding of the uterus.

 

The plant has a folk history in the treatment of cancer, modern research has isolated certain compounds from the plant that show anti cancer activity.

The root can be cooked and eaten as a vegetable. It is also a source of starch or arrowroot. Much used and relished in Chinese cooking, the root has a mild flavour and a crisp texture, even after cooing. It can be cooked with other vegetables, soaked in syrup or pickled in vinegar.

 

Young leaves can be cooked or eaten raw. The leaves can also be used to wrap small parcels of food before cooking them. Stems can be cooked. A taste somewhat like beetroot. They are usually peeled before use. 

 

Seed can be eaten raw or cooked. A delicate flavour. The seed can be popped like popcorn, ground into a powder and used in making bread or eaten dry. The bitter tasting embryo is often removed. The roasted seed is used as a coffee substitute.

 

Petals can be floated in soups or used as a garnish. The stamens are used to flavour tea.

The leaves are used as plates for eating food off. The oil obtained from the seeds is used as an ingredient in commercial cosmetic preparations as an emollient, humectant and skin conditioner.

 

An extract of the seeds is used as an ingredient in commercial cosmetic preparations as an antimicrobial, antioxidant, astringent, emollient, hair and sin conditioner, skin protector.

 

Various parts of the plant are used as ingredients in commercial cosmetic preparations as antioxidants, skin conditioners, viscosity controllers.