Instructions for using your Thermoplanter

*always use ground fault protection with this device*
*please read all instructions before using your Thermoplanter*

1. Unpack your Thermoplanter and make sure that all packing is removed from the inside of the inner pot. Also, make sure that the heater disk is seated into the center of inner pot.

2. Add water to your Thermoplanter until it covers the top of the heat disk and place coarse foam pad (supplied) over it.. This coarse foam pad is for separating the soil medium from the heater.

3. Fill the Thermoplanter 2/3 of the way with a good aquatic planting soil; a good mix would be 1/3 top soil, 1/3 composted manure and 1/3 sand - mixed well. Never use a soil with additives such as Perlite, Vermiculite, or Peat moss as they will float to the surface of the water and create a mess in your pond.

Tropical Water Lilies

1a. Using the Thermoplanter for Tropical Water Lilies. Add the tuber or grown plant to the Thermoplanter that is partially filled with soil. Use 3 aquatic fertilizer tablets to the soil. If just a tuber is being used, it can be planted just below the surface of the soil. Add the appropriate amount of soil to fill the inner pot to the top but be careful not to fill the outer pot. If you are using a grown-out, bare root tropical water lily, spread the roots out evenly, add 3 aquatic fertilizer tablets and fill the pot with soil to the appropriate level. You can also bury the growth point under the soil about half an inch, doing this will keep the crown of the plant warmer. Please take note that most other plants you can use the Thermoplanter with will not want to have the growth point buried under the soil; tropical water lilies are an exception to this rule.

2a. If a potted tropical water lily is being used, simply remove the lily from the pot it has been growing in and place it into the Thermoplanter. Fertilize and pack fresh soil around the roots.

3a. Submerge the Thermoplanter completely into a container of water for soaking. Allow all the air to escape from the soil of the newly planted lily and the Thermoplanter. Completing this step will keep your pond from getting cloudy from the muddy water escaping your newly planted lily. Remove Thermoplanter from the soaking container and fasten the insulated cover to the pot using the 8 caps enclosed. Stone can be added to the top of the cover if you would like to use them.

4a. For best results with your new tropical lily, in the early spring, place the Thermoplanter into a 12-25 gallon container for a week or so and then place into pond. This step will establish the plant a little quicker. Tropical water lilies can be grown and enjoyed for the entire season in almost any patio-type container that will allow the Thermoplanter to submerge completely. For best results in a pond or patio garden, choose a location with at least 6 hours of sunlight daily.

Hardy Water Lilies

1b.Your Thermoplanter can also be used to grow Hardy lilies. Marliac varieties will be better suited than Odarata root stock. Using the Thermoplanter in the early spring will jump start your hardy lilies and give you a longer growing season. Plug in your Thermoplanter in the spring for hardy water lilies after all the ice has thawed from the surface and be sure to unplug the Thermoplanter in mid summer to allow the hardy lily to start going dormant as the weather cools.

2b. Follow steps 1-3 at the beginning of these instructions. Add the hardy tuber to your Thermoplanter placing it at one end of the pot at a 45 degree angle and pointing the growth point towards the center of the pot. Note: you will not need the insulated cover for hardy water lilies, but insert the eight plugs into the inner pot to seal it from the outside pond water. Fertilize the newly planted lily with 3 aquatic fertilizer tablets.

3b. Follow steps in section 3a, but do not attach the insulated cover. You can add a decorative stone to the top of the pot. When using the Thermoplanter with a hardy water lily, repot and divide the tuber every year for best results. The extra heat will cause the tuber to grow faster than a normal planting container would.

Other Marginal Plants

Your Thermoplanter can be used to grow a variety of marginal plants in your pond. Taro, Papyrus, Canna, Umbrella Palm, just to name a few, can all be grown in the Thermoplanter. For planting marginal plants follow steps 1-3 at the beginning of these instructions and then plant your marginal of choice the way you would in any other pot.
Depending on the type of marginal you choose, the insulated cover may not be needed.
The Thermoplanter must be submerged at least ½ inch or it will dry out and burn out the heater. If you have a plant that you would like to grow that does not need to be under the water, you may put a few ¼ inch holes into the bottom of the outer pot of the Thermoplanter. The Thermoplanter must still be in at least 6 inches of water to be sure the heater disk is submerged.

Growing Dwarf Lotus

Lotus are beautiful and fun to grow, but they can be tricky to start. Only dwarf varieties of lotus can be grown in the Thermoplanter, a full size lotus would be too large. The biggest mistake people make growing lotus is they do not fertilize enough during the season. Lack of fertilizer does not allow the tubers to grow to a proper diameter and the lotus will not have the strength to make it through the winter. A proper schedule for fertilizing your lotus would be 3-4 aquatic fertilizer tablets every 2-3 weeks during the growing season.

1c. Follow steps 1-3 at the beginning of these instructions.

2c. After you have added the soil to 2/3 of the pot, fill the Thermoplanter to the top with water and find a sunny location to leave your Thermoplanter and new lotus until you see good growth starting, usually about a week. Be sure to add water to the Thermoplanter as needed. The location you choose may be inside if it is still cold or outside if the nights are not getting colder than 35º F.

3c. Place your lotus in the Thermoplanter and weight it down so it stays submerged and lays on the soil you just added in step 3; you may use a small stone or any thing with sufficient weight to hold it under. It is important not to push the new tuber into the potting soil, doing so may cause your new tuber to rot before it begins to grow. Plug your Thermoplanter into a proper GFI protected outlet.

4c. After you see the lotus tuber starting to grow, add 3-4 fertilizer tablets and gently fill the rest of the Thermoplanter with soil. Do not fertilize until after you see the tuber growing. It is not necessary to use the insulated cover with lotus but insert the eight plugs into the top of inner planting container.

5c. Place your lotus into a pond or patio garden and submerge 1-2 inches below the surface and enjoy.

Growing the Victoria Water Lily

The Victoria Water Lily is the queen of all water lilies. Anyone who views her is in immediate awe in her presence. Anyone who has had the honor to cultivate her holds her in the utmost respect. Growing her can be difficult; but, if you have the time, the will and the space in your pond, she is worth every effort. For growing her you will need at least 144 square feet or a 12 ft. by 12 ft. pond. Growing the Victoria in a Thermoplanter will slightly dwarf the plant, with the average leaves at 31-32 inches across, still huge by most standards. In the correct climate and container, the leaves of the Victoria can reach 6 feet across. Below are some methods for growing these magnificent plants using the Thermoplanter. The Thermoplanter will allow these plants to be grown in places never before possible without the protection of a greenhouse or going to great expense heating the entire pond to 80º F. For complete growing instructions, go to our website at www.Thermoplanter.com and go to Links, click on www.victoria-adventure.org and you will find detailed instructions for growing these plants from seed and care during the season. Lilypons water gardens also has these plants available through their catalog as small ready-to-go juveniles. You will also find Lilypons at our web site in the Links section.

1d. If you are growing the Victoria water lily from seed, get complete instructions from the WGI at www.victoria-adventure.org also in the Links section of our web site. Kit Knots is widely known for her expertise in cultivating the Victoria and offers full instructions for the care and cultivation of the seed. The Thermoplanter can be used to sprout the seed by placing it into a 12-25 gallon container that has sufficient depth to allow it to be covered by 4-8 inches of water. For using the Thermoplanter, follow steps 1-3 at the beginning of these instructions but fill the Thermoplanter to the top of the inner pot and follow instructions for cultivating the seed.

2d. For planting a young plant, follow instructions 1a-4a, but do not use the insulated cover. Depending on the size of your young plant, it may be too large to conveniently place in a 12-25 gallon container for establishment. It is recommended that you order your plant and time the delivery date so you can place it directly into your pond outdoors. Once the water is over 60º F, it can be placed into the pond outdoors.

The Hellquist method for growing the Victoria in a Thermoplanter

3d. After you have grown out your Victoria from seed, or purchased a ready-to-go plant, the Thermoplanter will be used a little differently than the other planting methods. Locate a large plastic nursery pot, something in the range of 12-15 gallons. Place some soil into the bottom of the container to allow the Thermoplanter to be about 1 inch lower than the larger container you have placed it in. Fill and pack soil around the Thermoplanter into the larger container. Use of the foam cover is not necessary. Mound and firmly pack soil around the Base of the Victoria. Place entire planting into the pond in an area that will allow for 5-8 inches of water covering the pot. You will need help as the double pot method will be very heavy. The reason for the double pot is the extra heat that is needed for growing a Victoria. No heat escapes from the outside of the Thermoplanter with the larger pot and soil surrounding it; instead the heat is directed upwards bathing the crown in heat during colder nights and cloudy days that would otherwise put the plant into shock. The Victoria is an annual even in the Amazon river where it is native, trying to over-winter this plant will probably not be successful.

Wintering your plants in a Thermoplanter

Tropical water lilies

Methods for wintering your tropical water lily will depend on what USDA zone you are located in. go to www.Thermoplanter.com for a zone map if you are unsure of your climate zone. Generally speaking, if you are in zones 7-8, you may leave your Thermoplanter in your pond or patio garden during the winter months. It is possible that this will be true for zones 5-6, depending on the type of tropical water lily used but much more testing will have to be done before we can say for sure. Even with the Thermoplanter running, you will notice your tropical water lily starting to go dormant in mid-October due to shorter days. Dormancy is mostly triggered by the shorter days. Tropical water lilies evolved in areas of the world near or on the equator, so the plant likes 12 hours of sunlight.

1e. Climate zones 7,8,9 leave your Thermoplanter and lily in your pond during the winter months. Stop fertilizing your plant in early October. For best results in the next season, you will need to repot your plant with fresh soil in the spring. Let your lily remain in the Thermoplanter during the winter months. As spring approaches, you will notice the plant starting to grow more vigorous. This is when you need to pull your lily and Thermoplanter out of your pond and repot your Water lily with fresh soil and fertilizer. It is at this point that you may notice your plant has divided or will have several new baby plants attached to the main tuber. These young plants may be broken off and potted into small pots or into a new Thermoplanter - if you wish to expand your plantings in your pond. You also may want to share or trade your plant with a friend. In the near future, we will have a section on www.Thermoplanter.com for trading your extra plants with other enthusiasts around the country - so stay tuned.

2e. Zones 3,4,5,6. In these climate zones you will need to remove your tropical for the winter and place it in a suitable container that will allow the Thermoplanter to submerge under 3-6 inches of water. This can then be placed by a sunny window or some artificial light for the winter months. During this period, you will only see limited growth. Your plant will start to revive in late February as the days begin to get longer. At this point, you will need to begin fertilizing the lily with small doses - 1-2 tablets. If you have been using artificial light during the winter, it would be good to find a sunny window or increase the artificial light you are using. Repot and divide and fertilize as necessary after you notice good growth starting. There are other methods that will probably work well with Varieties that form tubers. One of these methods would be to pull out your tropical lily and remove the inner pot from the Thermoplanter and let it drain for 12 hours. Remove all the leaves and place the inner pot, soil and tuber in a plastic bag. Store the bagged inner pot in an area that stays at around 55-60º F until mid February. At that point, place inner pot back into the outer pot of the Thermoplanter, submerge into a container of water that will allow 4-6 inches of water over the top and plug the unit in. You should notice growth in a week or so. Tropical water lilies that are viviparous will not winter this way, so be sure to know what kind of lily you have. The Thermoplanter has only been tested for 3 years, so there will be many more methods that could work. Please contact us with techniques that you may discover so we may share it with everyone enjoying this hobby.

Hardy Water Lilies and Lotus

Hardy water lilies and lotus are easy to winter. Unplug your Thermoplanter in October to allow your plant a rest period. Make sure that the lily or lotus is in enough water to insure that it is below the freezing line in your pond. As soon as your pond has thawed in the spring you may plug the Thermoplanter back in and begin fertilizing it. If you need to divide and repot your lotus, it will have to be done before it starts to grow in the spring. It may be necessary to repot and divide your lily as soon as you start to notice the new growth starting.

Tropical Marginal plants

Tropical marginal plants can be easily over wintered inside near a sunny window. You will have to submerge the Thermoplanter so it does not dry out or you may put two ¼ inch holes in the bottom of the outer pot. This will allow water to flow into the pot. You must still keep the Thermoplanter in 6 inches of water to allow sufficient water to cover the heater disk so you do not burn it out.

Other Important Information:

1. This appliance is not to be used for persons (including children) with reduced physical, sensory or mental capabilities, or lack of experience and knowledge, unless they have been given supervision or instruction concerning use of the appliance by a person responsible for their safety.

2. The Thermoplanter electrical supply cord cannot be replaced. If the cord is damaged, the appliance should be scrapped.

Storage:

Store your Thermoplanter unplugged in a cool, dry, indoor location when not in use. Keep away from excessive heat.

All of us at Black River Nursery LLC wish you the best of luck with your Thermoplanter and what ever type of plant you wish to grow. We would like to hear from you about different ways you grew and wintered plants in your Thermoplanter. Please contact us at www.thermoplanter.com and share your stories.

Happy Water Gardening!

©2006 Black River Nursery
Thermoplanter