Delightful lotus variety that blooms with hundreds of petals

A large lotus variety that blooms with hundreds, even a thousand, petals, grown by a lotus enthusiast in the former Quảng Nam province (now part of Đà Nẵng city) in central Vietnam, is drawing the attention of lotus lovers.

The owner of this unusual lotus is Đặng Hiệp Hoàng, who works at the People's Committee of Vĩnh Điện ward (in the former Điện Bàn town, former Quảng Nam province).

In April 2017, a friend helped Hoàng buy this special variety from abroad. As it grows, the plant develops taller stalks and broader leaves than ordinary lotuses. Most notably, its flower buds are large and produce a great many petals, with some blooms carrying 800 to 1,000 petals.

The outer petals are large, growing progressively smaller and more densely packed toward the center, and the flowers are strikingly vivid in color. After three seasons, the plants are producing more and more blooms. Each flower lasts about three weeks and grows as large as an adult's hand.

Hoàng says the variety is fairly easy to grow and hardy. Because of its large size, it needs plenty of nutrients to thrive. However, it produces few rhizomes, so it propagates slowly.

Despite growing it for two years, Hoàng has so far propagated only eight pots. "Many people who see it ask to buy some, but because supply is limited I only sell very few. This variety fetches millions of VND per plant, but supply can't keep up with demand," Hoàng said.

Đặng Hiệp Hoàng in his garden of hundred-petal lotuses - (Photo: TẤN LỰC).