I work with my father Dr. Slearmlarp Wasuwat as a gardener, waterlily data collector and assistant in research projects at our house Pang U Bon (which in Thai means House of Waterlily). Dr. Slearmlarp started to collect and study waterlilies and lotus in 1969. We share the information we have with and support other institutes, universities and hobbyists. For that reason I know many people who are interested in waterlilies.

Nymphaea 'Dao Thammanoon', Dr. Slearmlarp hybrid >

In 1969, Dr. Slearmlarp imported many varieties of hardy and tropical day and night blooming waterlily cultivars for trials in Thailand at Pang U Bon 1*. He hybridized those day blooming tropicals that survived.

The first two hybrids that he obtained from N. ‘Trail Blazer’ x N. ’Mr. Martin E. Randig’ were N. ’Praow’ (or N. ’Praw’) and N. ’Ply’ in 1978. These were followed by the famous open pollinated N. ’Larp Prasert’ in 1980, N.’Primlarp’, an open pollinated seedling from night blooming N. ’Mrs. George C. Hitchcock’ in 1984, the first viviparous red pygmy N. ’Dang Jiew’ from N. ’Tina’ as mother in 1985, tropical day blooming N. ’Thongsook’ in 1988 and N. ’Gulyanee’ from a self-pollination of N. ’Trail Blazer’ in 1990.  

N. 'Chompoo Nix', Mr. Roengsak hybrid 

With close cooperation among waterlily lovers, new waterlily hybrids were developed and released. The famous N. ’Mangkala Ubol’, bred by Dr. N. Nopchai Chansipa from Bangphra Technology University at Chonburi Province, won IWGS‘s Best New Hardy Waterlily of 2004. Other of Dr. Nopchai’s hardy hybrids released after 1998 are N. ’Chao Sao Natee’, N. ’Sri Bangpra’ and many more.

The well-known N. ’King of Siam’, a very popular tropical day blooming hybrid developed by Mr.Chaiyapon Tamasuwan in 1996, still attracts great demand in the USA. His other hybrids N. ’Sriwichai’ and N. ’Love on Fire’ won the third and the first best new tropical day blooming waterlily in the contest at the Thai-IWGS Symposium 2007 at Rama IX Public Park in Bangkok.

The most famous hardy waterlily hybridizer from Thailand is Mr. Pairat Songpanich. His hardy hybrids won the IWGS Best New Hardy Waterlily contest almost every year since 2006. His winning hardies were: N. ’Tan-Khwan’ in 2006, N. ’Miss Siam’ in 2007, N. ’Tanpong’ at Thai-IWGS Symposium 2007.

Lately he has been able to develop the first blue hardy waterlily, the most desirable lily awaited for more than hundred years by waterlily fanatics all over the world. He named this wonderful hybrid N. ’Siam Blue Hardy’ in 2008. The Plant Breeding and Multiplication Society of Thailand gave the Best Plant Breeder Award to him in December 2008.  

N. 'Siam Blue Hardy' >

1. Lotus product earning groups are separated into two categories.

1.1 Those who harvest flowers, seeds and roots of lotus from natural public wetlands around the country.

1.2 Planters who cultivate the lotus and collect its products for the wholesale market in urban areas near big cities such as Bangkok, Nonthaburi, Nakornpathom and PathumTani. 

2. The ornamental waterlily growers for selling in Thailand are in two groups.

2.1 Producers of mixed unknown tropical waterlily cultivars and the easy cultivars of hardy waterlilies. They are located near main cities such as Nonthaburi and Supanburi.

2.2 The professional group selling known cultivars from tuber, rhizome, shoot or sprout. Selling places of this group are their own nurseries or private houses of well known technicians, teachers and collectors.

3. The exporters who collect propagated materials from group 1 or 2 in large quantities and export to other countries.

Thailand can contribute to waterlily development in many ways such as hybrid technology, pre- and post-harvest technology, molecular and gene transfer technology.