Page 116 - San Angelo

Ken Landon, the man responsible for the extensive collection, is relentless for his acquisition of different varieties of water lilies. His adventures to retrieve the bulbs, sometimes submerged in 8 ft. of treacherous water, have brought him to alligator pits, jungles, and snake infested waters.

Due to Ken’s relentless request for an exceptional collection, San Angelo’s water lily pond gained international recognition and the International Water Lily Society deemed Ken’s collection as the frst international designation in North America. There are larger pools but most do not have the diversity of the San Angelo garden. More than 10,000 people visit the water lily pond annually. One of Landon’s experiences demonstrated the importance and rareness of San Angelo’s collection through an international perspective. A representative of the Egyptian government contacted Landon to ask about the rare Blue Lotus of the Nile. This particular lily is considered sacred in ancient Egypt, and the San Angelo collection is home to some of the special fowers. Three weeks after their phone call, the representative few to San Angelo to see the illustrious fower. The representative requested seed pods to help supplement the diminishing number on the Nile. Of course, Ken shipped a large cache of seeds to Egypt.

The San Angelo lily pond is home to 150 varieties, hybrids, and species on a rotating basis. The fve species native to Texas can also be found at the San Angelo pond. The collection is note worthy not only for its national recognition, but also because twenty of the species of lilies are endangered or near extinction. San Angelo’s water lily pond is an immaculate refuge for tranquility and exotic allure. Local painter Kathryn Pittman fnds inspiration from the collection of exotic fowers. She is painting a series of 100 individual water lilies; she is on number eighty. Pittman began her series in 1989, and she solely credits the water lily display as her muse.

“I’ve always been fascinated by water.