Nelumbo nucifera 'Ru Yu', bowl lotus, shipped as a dormant lotus tuber.

Ru Yu is a tiny lotus with the shape of a full-sized one. The flower opens as a compact cup of creamy white, pointed petals held close together, a little like a small porcelain lotus.

The outer petals keep a soft green at the base, so the color moves from the green bud into the white interior. The name carries the wish that things turn out the way you hope.

At a glance

• Flower color: Pure white
• Flower type: Single, fewer than 25 petals
• Plant height: Bowl (micro to mini)
• Container: 6" and wider, 4"-10" deep

As a bowl lotus, this one settles at 2 to 12 inches of water over the crown once established. Start a new tuber under 2 to 4 inches and raise the level as it pushes aerial leaves, with the growing tip left uncovered. Pot size, soil and the rest of the method are in the lotus planting instructions.

Browse more white lotus or see every bowl and miniature lotus we carry.