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American Lotus

Nelumbo lutea

Found in ponds, natural lakes, sluggish streams, freshwater tidal marshes. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

39
Good

Native to Florida. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
3 feet
Spread
3–4 feet
Light
Full sun
Soil moisture
Moist to standing water

Space about 3.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 8 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
June to September
Fruiting season
Summer to fall

Recorded in 24 Florida counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 4

Ponds, lakes and their shores

Georgia pond and emergent wetland
Regional / representative. Shown: Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Georgia; representative pond ecosystem, a neighboring state.Georgia pond and emergent wetland, Robert 'Bob' Hynes, 1997. Public domain. Source record.

Depression ponds and limesinks

Shallow ponds in Coastal Plain depressions, such as limesinks and the ponds in some Carolina bays, that rise and fall with the seasons.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Flowing water and its banks, bars and rocky shoals.

Freshwater tidal marshes

Marshes along tidal rivers where the water is fresh but rises and falls with the tide.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Florida. Shared habitat, not food. 175 animals.

All wildlife of Florida

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

6CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL

Genus host records with ranges including FL · Nelumbo

  • Bellura obliquaCattail Border Moth, Cattail Diver
  • Elophila gyralisWaterlily Borer Moth
  • Elophila obliteralisWaterlily Leafcutter Moth
  • Ostrinia penitalisAmerican Lotus Borer, Lily Moth
  • Parapoynx maculalisPolymorphic Pondweed Moth
  • Psara obscuralisObscure Psara Moth
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
3BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Nelumbo

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Beetles 2
  • Diabrotica 12-punctata
  • Typocerus badius

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

Flies 5
  • Notiphila unicolor
  • Orthoneura nitida
  • Pipiza pulchella
  • Sphaerophoria cylindrica
  • Syrphus ribesii

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

No records yet · Ants · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Nelumbonaceae
Hardiness
Zones 4a–10b
Flower color
Cream or yellow
Growth rate
Moderate
Growth habit
Spreads by rhizomes
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
Summer
Fruit ends
Fall

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “June to September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Flower color · “Cream or yellow” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
  • Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit begins · “Summer” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit ends · “Fall” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth habit · “Spreads by rhizomes” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Hardiness · “Zones 4a–10b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differs)
  • Height · “3 feet” · Tennessee Smart Yards (ranked first; USDA PLANTS, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differ) · Published Tennessee growing guidance; exact cached scientific heading
  • Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differ)
  • primary_flower_color · “yellow” · USDA PLANTS
  • Soil · “Frequent standing water; Moist” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differ)
  • Spread · “3–4 feet” · Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder
Also known as

American Lotus Lily

Conservation status

Florida rankS4
Global rankG4
FL statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

Will it fit your yard?

Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.

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How to check your spot

Growing cautions

For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.

Sources