Sacred Lotus / Nelumbo nucifera

I have always loved the large seedpod of the beautiful Sacred Lotus, but have usually seen it only in its dried, dark brown state, when it is often used in flower arrangements. Lol, I felt as if 20 eyes were watching me while I was taking photos of this beauty at the Calgary Zoo three days ago.

Yesterday, I picked up the estimate for building a ground-level, cedar deck to cover the whole of my tiny 16'x18' backyard. It is on a bit of an incline, so that would give extra work of course, plus the plants/shrubs in my two small borders would have to be removed first. However, the total cost would be almost $10,000!! Can you imagine? So, I am back to square one again - just as I am with the sale of my brother's house in England, when the buyer backed out a few months after putting in his original offer. The only reason I thought about a wooden ground-level deck was that I had been unable to find anyone who would come and remove all plants/shrubs and put down netting and wood chips, as I just can't cope with a garden, even a small one. It seems no one wants a one-time-only piece of work - they all seem to want a job that is weekly or at least monthly ... sigh. Lol, I'm beginning to feel as if I'm taking one step forward and six steps back these days!

Lots of interesting information about the Sacred Lotus on Wikipedia.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelumbo_nucifera

Also a link to an interesting article in the Calgary Herald newspaper from 22nd July 2011.

www.calgaryherald.com/news/todays-paper/Secrets+sacred+lo...