How to repot pond plants in spring

Discover five waterlilies to grow.

Choose a slightly larger basket for your plant and make sure your planting shelf is deep enough for the new basket. Bear in mind that new compost introduces more nutrients, which may cause an early algae bloom in the pond. This will drop as soon as the bigger pond plants start growing.

Here's how to repot your pond plants.

You Will Need

• Aquatic baskets
• Aquatic compost
• Gravel

Step 1

Knock the plant out of the old basket. You may need to cut it out if the roots have worked through the mesh. It won't harm the plant if you prune the roots free.

Step 2

Cut out dead or damaged material and remove weeds or duckweed from around the plant. Pull the roots out a bit if they are tightly packed into the the shape of the old basket.

Step 3

Use a larger basket and repot the plant in fresh, loam-based aquatic compost or John Innes No.2. Leave the rootball exposed at the top but firm the compost well.

Step 4

Put a layer of gravel around the exposed rootball to weigh down the compost, then soak thorougly before gently lowering it back into the pond.