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Nuphar lutea

Common name:	Yellow Water Lily	Family:	Nymphaeaceae
Author:	(L.)Sm.	Botanical references:	17, 200
Synonyms:	Nymphaea lutea (L.)
Known Hazards:	There are a number of reports that the plant is edible but one report suggests that the plant is poisonous without giving further details[19].
Range:	Europe, including Britain, to N. Asia.
Habitat:	Deep, slow moving or still water to a depth of 3metres[19, 100].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	N. advena[H] N. lutar[H] N. luteum[E,Smo]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	European Yellow Pond-lily [H], Gele Plomp [D], Nenufar Amarillo [E], Pond Lily, Yellow [S], Pondlily,Yellow [E], Sarinilufer [E], Yellow Pond Lily [S], Yellow Pond-lily [B], Yellow Pondlily [P], Yellow Water-lily [L],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	lutea = yellow;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Nymphaeales. Water-lily family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Spain; Turkey; Us

Physical Characteristics

Perennial. It is hardy to zone 4. It is in flower from June to August, and the seeds ripen from August to September. The scented flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Flies. We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It can grow in water.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Pond.

Edible Uses

Drink; Leaves; Root; Seed.

Root - cooked[2, 46, 61, 177, 183]. An edible starch can be extracted from the root[183]. A possible emergency food[61]. The root has a bitter flavour - this bitterness can be removed by leaching the root in water[K].
Leaves and leaf stalks - cooked[2, 177, 183].
Seed - cooked[105]. It can be ground into a powder and used in making bread and porridge, or for thickening soups etc[207]. The seed can also be parched, when it swells considerably but does not burst like popcorn[183]. It is then normally eaten dry[207].
A refreshing drink is made from the flowers[2, 183].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Anaphrodisiac; Anodyne; Antiscrophulatic; Antispasmodic; Astringent; Cardiotonic; Demulcent; Hypotensive; Sedative; Vasoconstrictor.

The roots are anaphrodisiac, anodyne, antiscrofulatic, astringent, cardiotonic, demulcent and sedative[4]. Caution should be exercised because large doses are potentially toxic[222].
A tea made from the roots is used in the treatment of 'sexual irritability', blood diseases, chills etc[4, 222]. The root is poulticed and applied to swellings, inflammations, cuts etc[4, 222].
The root contains steroids and is a folk remedy for infertility[222].
Alkaloids in the root are reportedly hypotensive, antispasmodic, cardiac, tonic and vasoconstrictor[222].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

A water plant requiring a rich soil and a sunny position[1, 56]. Succeeds in light shade[200]. It is best grown in still water up to 250cm deep but it also tolerates slow moving water[200]. Prefers shallow water[1].
Plants are hardy to about -20°c[187].
The flowers have a sickly scent[188]. The flowers have a brandy-like scent[245]. This unique smell is due to a combination of acetic acid and ethyl alcohol to form ethylacetate[245].

Propagation

Seed - sow as soon as it is ripe in a greenhouse in pots submerged under 25mm of water. Prick out into individual pots as soon as the first true leaf appears and grow them on in water in a greenhouse for at least two years before planting them out in late spring.
The seed is collected by wrapping the developing seed head in a muslin bag to avoid the seed being lost. Harvest it 10 days after it sinks below the soil surface or as soon as it reappears[200].
Division in May. Each portion must have at least one eye. Submerge in pots in shallow water until established[56].

Scent

Flowers: Fresh: The flowers have a brandy-like scent[245]. This unique smell is due to a combination of acetic acid and ethyl alcohol to form ethylacetate[245].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

PFAF Web Pages

This plant is mentioned in the following web pages

The Edible Pond and Bog Garden

Web References

Details of Medicinal Uses, Habitats, etc. in M. Grieve A Modern Herbal (1931) [4]
[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[L] Scientific and Common Names (some photos) from Lepidoptera and some other life forms
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Nuphar luteum (a possible synonym).

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[S] Image from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[S] Image from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[S] Image from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine

References for nuphar lutea (a possible synonym).

[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures
[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures

References for the family Nymphaeaceae.

[CHINA] Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[19] Stary. F. Poisonous Plants. Hamlyn 1983 ISBN 0-600-35666-3
Not very comprehensive, but easy reading.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[56] Muhlberg. H. Complete Guide to Water Plants. E. P. Publishing Ltd. 1982 ISBN 0-7158-0789-7
Deals with a wide range of plants for temperate areas (and indoor aquaria) with quite a lot of information on cultivation techniques.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[100] Polunin. O. Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. Oxford University Press 1969 ISBN 0192176218
An excellent and well illustrated pocket guide for those with very large pockets. Also gives some details on plant uses.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[187] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Perennials Volumes 1 and 2. Pan Books 1991 ISBN 0-330-30936-9
Photographs of over 3,000 species and cultivars of ornamental plants together with brief cultivation notes, details of habitat etc.

[188] Brickell. C. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. 1990 ISBN 0-86318-386-7
Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[207] Coffey. T. The History and Folklore of North American Wild Flowers. Facts on File. 1993 ISBN 0-8160-2624-6
A nice read, lots of information on plant uses.

[222] Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1990 ISBN 0395467225
A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

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Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.