Sacred pink lotus seeds, Nelumbo nucifera
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These seeds produce the sacred lotus, the standard form of Nelumbo nucifera, with pink flowers of 20 to 30 cm and round leaves held upright above the water. This large pond lotus produces stems of 90 to 180 cm and is grown in 15 to 45 cm of water in full sun; the seed should be filed before soaking.
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The summary
- What you receive: seeds of sacred lotus Nelumbo nucifera, from 4 to 30 depending on the format chosen.
- Getting started: file the shell, then soak the seeds in water kept between 20 and 25 °C.
- What you get: round upright leaves up to 180 cm tall and pink flowers 20 to 30 cm across.
- Space required: a container of 60 cm or more, under 15 to 45 cm of water, in full sun.
- Winter: hardy in USDA zones 4 to 11; the rhizome overwinters submerged without freezing solid.
- Patience: the seed germinates within a few days; the first flower arrives at the earliest in the second season.
Pink sacred lotus for sowing, stems 90 to 180 cm tall, for ponds
Pink sacred lotus seeds (Nelumbo nucifera) produce a large pond lotus whose round leaves stand above the water on stalks 90 to 180 cm tall, and whose pink flower measures 20 to 30 cm. It is grown in a container at least 60 cm deep, under 15 to 45 cm of water, in full sun. Its shell must be filed before soaking.
The sacred lotus is the typical form of the genus, the one found in Asian ponds and in classic depictions. Its round leaves do not float: they stand above the surface on a rigid stem, sometimes at 1.50 m, and the pink flower rises higher still. This upright habit distinguishes the lotus from the water lily more reliably than colour does.
🌡️ Heat before the expiry date
A lotus is managed by water temperature rather than by the calendar. The water in the soaking glass must stay at 20 to 25 °C for the shell to split, and the pond water must reach 20 °C for growth to start. If you sow in March behind a cool window, the seeds may never split. The guide on setting up your indoor seedling area explains how to provide regulated bottom heat, from 21 to 24 °C.
Without scarification, nothing germinates
A lotus seed has a waterproof shell that can remain intact for centuries, a longevity that has made the species famous. None of your seeds will therefore germinate if you simply soak them. File down one end, over a small area, until the creamy white of the interior shows, without cutting into the kernel, then leave them to soak in lukewarm water changed daily. Swelling is visible within 48 hours, and the green shoot emerges between the 3rd and the 10th day.
Controlling the temperature of the soaking glass
A suction-cup aquarium thermometer, graduated from 0 to 40 °C, sticks to the wall of a soaking jar and tells you whether the water really holds the 20 to 25 °C that makes the shell split. Placed afterwards in the pond, the same thermometer shows when the outdoor water reaches 20 °C and the young plant can go out. You thus sow and transplant by a measurement rather than by a date.
🧭 Where to position it in a pond
Transplanting takes place when the young plant has two or three leaves, before the roots become tangled in the glass. Choose a wide container without drainage holes, filled with heavy garden soil topped with 2 cm of gravel to stop the mud from clouding the water. Press the sprouted seed in only lightly, with the tips of the leaves pointing upwards, and submerge the whole thing under just a few centimetres of water. The depth is then increased over the following weeks as the stems lengthen, until the final height is reached.
The depth
The water depth ranges from 15 to 45 cm above the grow medium, and is reached gradually.
The container
The container measures at least 60 cm in diameter and sits on the bottom or on a pond ledge.
Light
The lotus requires 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight, with no tree shade.
Heat
Water must reach 21 to 24 °C in summer, a prerequisite for flowering.
🪷 Lotus or water lily
The confusion is constant in the trade, and it has consequences in a pond. A lotus rises out of the water, takes up volume in height and needs warm water to flower, whereas a water lily stays flat on the surface, covers more of it and tolerates cooler water. A small pond exposed to the wind suits the latter better, while a large sheltered pond in full sun shows off the former. If you want the floating habit, our blue water lily seeds meet that need, with one caveat: this tropical species must overwinter frost-free.
❄️ The rhizome in winter
The sacred lotus tolerates cold provided its rhizome does not freeze, which depends on depth rather than latitude. In a pond where the water only freezes at the surface, the container is simply placed at the deepest point and spends the winter there without any intervention. In a patio tub, which freezes through its whole height, the container is brought indoors, out of the frost, into a cellar or garage, with the grow medium kept just damp. The leaves die back and are cut off in autumn, and nothing reappears until the water has properly warmed up the following spring, often well after the other pond plants.
Technical specifications
The plant
- Botanical name
- Nelumbo nuciferaStandard form, commonly known as sacred lotus
- Stem height
- 90 to 180 cmLeaves and flowers held above the surface
- Leaf
- Round, up to 60 cmHeld upright on a rigid stem, with a non-wettable surface
- Flower
- Pink, 20 to 30 cmFragrant, open for 3 to 4 days
At the pond
- Water depth
- 15 to 45 cmAbove the grow medium, the outlet sits higher up
- Container
- 60 cm and aboveThe rhizome runs horizontally and flowering follows
- Spread
- 90 to 120 cmSurface area taken up by a mature plant
- Water temperature
- 21 to 24 °CGrowth threshold in summer; below this the plant stagnates
The seedling
- Scarification
- MandatoryAt one end, down to the clear layer, without cutting into the kernel
- Soaking water
- 20 to 25 °CIn light, renewed every day
- Hull slot
- 2 to 3 daysWithout a slot, you re-file and start again
- Hardiness
- USDA zones 4 to 11The rhizome overwinters submerged, clear of ice
To budget for separately
- 60 cm container
- Pond tub or basketWithout a drainage hole, or lined with a membrane
- Heavy grow medium
- Clay or garden soilCovered with rounded gravel once the plant is in place
6 further specifications are available in the detailed view.
In the box
- 1 resealable sachet labelled with the botanical name
- 4 to 30 sacred lotus seeds Nelumbo nucifera, depending on the size chosen
Water depth, spread, flowering period and hardiness: values published by specialist growers and horticultural databases, retrieved on 20/09/2026. The figures used are the most conservative for metropolitan France.
Four lotus plants to sow, four space requirements
All four are scarified and soaked in the same way. What changes is the space they take up once fully grown.
Four varieties, one seedling protocol
The filing and soaking are identical on all four. So the choice of variety depends on the container and the water depth you actually have available.
| Dwarf bonsai lotus seeds, Nelumbo nuciferaYour choice | Recommended Sacred pink lotus seeds, Nelumbo nuciferaYour choice | Giant Sunburst lotus seeds, Nelumbo nuciferaYour choice | American yellow lotus seeds, Nelumbo luteaYour choice | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The space it requires | ||||
| Height above the water surface | 20 à 40 cm | 90 to 180 cm | 120 to 180 cm | 90 to 180 cm |
| Water depth above the grow medium | 5 à 30 cm | 15 à 45 cm | 30 à 45 cm | 15 à 60 cm |
| Recommended container width | 60 cm | 60 cm and over | 50 cm and over | 60 cm and over |
| What you sow | ||||
| Origin | Asia, dwarf form | Asia, standard form | Cultivar Sunburst, bred in the United States | North America, species |
| Flower colour | Pink to white | Pink | Cream yellow | Pale yellow |
| At the pond | ||||
| Trained as a bowl or basin shape | Yes | No | No | No |
| Spreading rhizome to keep contained | No | No | No | Yes |
Dwarf bonsai lotus seeds, Nelumbo nucifera
The space it requires
Height above the water surface20 à 40 cm
Water depth above the grow medium5 à 30 cm
Recommended container width60 cm
What you sow
OriginAsia, dwarf form
Flower colourPink to white
At the pond
Trained as a bowl or basin shapeYes
Spreading rhizome to keep containedNo
Sacred pink lotus seeds, Nelumbo nuciferaRecommended
The space it requires
Height above the water surface90 to 180 cm
Water depth above the grow medium15 à 45 cm
Recommended container width60 cm and over
What you sow
OriginAsia, standard form
Flower colourPink
At the pond
Trained as a bowl or basin shapeNo
Spreading rhizome to keep containedNo
Giant Sunburst lotus seeds, Nelumbo nucifera
The space it requires
Height above the water surface120 to 180 cm
Water depth above the grow medium30 à 45 cm
Recommended container width50 cm and over
What you sow
OriginCultivar Sunburst, bred in the United States
Flower colourCream yellow
At the pond
Trained as a bowl or basin shapeNo
Spreading rhizome to keep containedNo
American yellow lotus seeds, Nelumbo lutea
The space it requires
Height above the water surface90 to 180 cm
Water depth above the grow medium15 à 60 cm
Recommended container width60 cm and over
What you sow
OriginNorth America, species
Flower colourPale yellow
At the pond
Trained as a bowl or basin shapeNo
Spreading rhizome to keep containedYes
Heights, depths and colours: horticultural references and specialist growers, recorded on 20/09/2026; yellow lotus colouring from the Flora of North America, on 07/10/2026.
Help choosing
The lotus to suit your pond
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It covers preparing your order and then the transit time quoted by the carrier, counted in working days.
It is not a guaranteed delivery date: public holidays, peak periods, customs or a carrier delay can extend it. The exact amount, in your currency, is worked out in the cart once your address is entered.
A packet of seeds travels as a small parcel and is combined at no extra cost with the rest of your order. The exact amount is calculated in the basket. As a plant or living organism, this product is excluded from the right of withdrawal (article L221-28, 4° of the French Consumer Code), because it deteriorates quickly.
Frequently asked questions
6 questions
6 key questions
Growing calendar
Benchmarks for mainland France. On a lotus, water temperature opens and closes the season, and a two-week difference between regions is perfectly normal.
| Stage | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scarification and soaking4 months | Scarification and soaking: no | Scarification and soaking: no | Scarification and soaking: no | Scarification and soaking in April | Scarification and soaking in May | Scarification and soaking in June | Scarification and soaking in July | Scarification and soaking: no | Scarification and soaking: no | Scarification and soaking: no | Scarification and soaking: no | Scarification and soaking: no |
| Potting up3 months | Potting up: no | Potting up: no | Potting up: no | Potting up: no | Potting up in May | Potting up in June | Potting up in July | Potting up: no | Potting up: no | Potting up: no | Potting up: no | Potting up: no |
| Introduction to the pond3 months | Introduction to the pond: no | Introduction to the pond: no | Introduction to the pond: no | Introduction to the pond: no | Introduction to the pond: no | Introduction to the pond in June | Introduction to the pond in July | Introduction to the pond in August | Introduction to the pond: no | Introduction to the pond: no | Introduction to the pond: no | Introduction to the pond: no |
| Flowering of established plants3 months | Flowering of established plants: no | Flowering of established plants: no | Flowering of established plants: no | Flowering of established plants: no | Flowering of established plants: no | Flowering of established plants: no | Flowering of established plants in July | Flowering of established plants in August | Flowering of established plants in September | Flowering of established plants: no | Flowering of established plants: no | Flowering of established plants: no |
| Rhizome dormancy6 months | Rhizome dormancy in January | Rhizome dormancy in February | Rhizome dormancy in March | Rhizome dormancy: no | Rhizome dormancy: no | Rhizome dormancy: no | Rhizome dormancy: no | Rhizome dormancy: no | Rhizome dormancy: no | Rhizome dormancy in October | Rhizome dormancy in November | Rhizome dormancy in December |
KeyScarification and soakingPotting upIntroduction to the pondFlowering of established plantsRhizome dormancy
This month
October
Growing guidance
- Scarification
- At one endDown to the pale layer, without cutting into the kernel
- Soaking water
- 20 to 25 °CIn light, renewed every day
- Hull slot
- 2 to 3 daysOtherwise file deeper and start again
- Potting depth
- Approx. 2 cmIn the clay, the seed has swollen and split
- Final water depth
- 15 à 45 cmAbove the grow medium, reached gradually
- Container diameter
- 60 cm and overThe rhizome spreads horizontally, flowering follows
- Water temperature
- 21 to 24 °CSummer growth threshold in the pond
- Aspect
- Full sun6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight per day
- Adult spread
- 90 to 120 cmThings to consider before propagating new plants
- Hardiness
- Zones USDA 4 to 11Overwintering rhizome submerged, below the ice
What you need to know
- File the seed at one end, over an area of a few millimetres, until you can see the creamy white of the interior. Filing into the kernel destroys the future plant.
- Keep the water in the glass above 20 °C. Below that, the shell will not split, and prolonged soaking makes no difference to that outcome.
- Choose your container before sowing. A lotus transplants very poorly, and a plant that starts in too small a pot loses an entire season when it is moved.
- Lower the container in stages of 10 cm at a time, never more, and only once the leaves are clearly above the surface.
- Keep the plant away from waterfalls and pump outlets. Large leaves act like sails, they flatten in the spray and the flower stems end up broken.
- Leave one seed pod to ripen at the end of summer if you want to harvest your own seeds. They can be sown the following season using exactly the same method.
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