Because this is the water-lily Marliac named for his home, you expect something special of it-and you will not be disappointed. This lily is remarkable for both form and coloring. Blossom is very double, sometimes with more than a hundred erect, narrow petals (many gardeners compare it to an immense dahlia). A delicate shade of pink on opening, it fades in the course of a week to a cream color, then pure white.

A long-established water-lily deservedly popular; many dealers report it the biggest seller of all the hardies. Blooms, 6 and 7 inches in diameter, open carmine-rose and deepen within a few days to dark rose, always with the scent of apple blossoms. Produces an abundance of symmetrical, semi double blooms, but adapts itself readily to medium or large ponds because leaves are quite small. A good flower for neophyte water gardeners, because frequently it produces flowers three weeks after planting. One of the very few water-lilies that does well in partial shade.

Large, tulip-shaped blooms with long petals of white, barely touched with pink. The flower is conspicuous for remarkable white stamens and orange-red petaloids, which together give an exotic effect. Extensive grower.

(Frequently listed as Crystal White or Snowball.) Large, very double bloom with such a tremendous number of dewy white petals that from a distance it looks like a glistening globe floating on the water. A fine cut flower, for it is fragrant, and the olive-green sepals contrast beautifully with the bloom. Plant has a comparatively small leaf spread and is n strong grower in either medium or large ponds.

Listed as either a red or a yellow, and it is both. Small blooms are orange-pink on opening, and shade to canary-yellow within a few days. Bright-orange stamens, which hold their color. Green foliage is mottled brown or purple. Small grower, excellent for tubs.

-A yellow hybrid from a crossing of a Marliac variety with N. mexicana. Plant is vigorous, producing 5- to 7-inch blooms with extremely long and pointed petals. The deeper the water, the more freely it flowers.

Medium-sized, star-shaped, white blooms which extend 3 to 4 inches above the water. Green sepals and bright-green foliage give a cool, refreshing look. Not a large grower, but blooms profusely in small ponds and tubs.

Changeable with a nice succession of color. Flowers open delicate orange-red, deepen to coppery shades, and finally become dark copper-red. Foliage heavily mottled purple. Medium grower.

Huge, rich-rose bloom overlaid with apricot, passing to dark, and then to very dark coppery bronze. Blooms held well above water. Medium grower.

-Distinctive among the hardies. The only very fragrant red, with the scent of sweet apples. Succeeds with much less sun than most other hardies and grows quickly. Blooms are of average size, about 5 inches in diameter, and of an overall dark-red hue with a bluish cast, somewhat granular in appearance but not streaked or splotched. Stamens are dark orange, tipped with yellow. One of the freest flowering of the hardies, and the purple foliage restricts itself to a small pond area.