FULLERTON, Calif. — Ah, the sweet smell of success.
That's what botanist Edward Read savors every time he stops by the pond.
"This is the first thing I come in to work to look at," Read said, sitting on the edge of the concrete that frames the pond. "And then, right before I leave, I come and check on Victoria."
He and the plant are on a first-name basis, but for the rest of us, the big beauty is the Victoria Longwood Hybrid.
"A hybrid between Victoria Amazonia and Victoria Cruziana," Read explained.
Read has tried to grow one several times over the past 12 years, but this fourth time was the charm.
He planted these seeds in March, experimenting with water temperatures and fertilizers. Finally, he had flora — giant, sturdy lily pads and, so far, four beautiful blossoms.
"I was elated, right?" he enthused, remembering how he felt when the plant finally took root. "I mean, I'm a total plant nerd. I just love these things."
He's learning as he goes, he said, and is continually surprised.
The lily pads grow remarkably fast and can reach up to 6 feet in diameter — twice the size they are now and almost as wide as the pond itself.
"Yeah, we're going to run out of space real quick," Read laughed.
Putting on a pair of thick gloves, he points out the plethora of sharp spikes that protrude from the outside edge of each pad.
"This plant has also caused me some pain, with the joy!" he admitted, clearly not holding a grudge.
The underside of the green circular leaf is an intricate architecture of deep red and purple, forming air pockets that make each pad incredibly strong.
In fact, during the Victorian era, taking photos of babies on the lily pads was all the rage.
But why grow this tropical plant here at Cal State Fullerton?
For Read, it was a new challenge and a chance to expand his impressive collection of exotic plants filling four greenhouses.
This is a teaching collection; the greater the plant life diversity, the more students like Ashley Ibraham can learn.
"I think it's amazing that we get to see something like that over here on campus," she said, camera in hand. "It's just beautiful. I can't get over it."
Ibraham is a senior studying molecular biology. The greenhouses are full of wonders, she said, and she discovers something new every day.
"Seeing things grow from, like, nothing or from cuttings into, like, these huge, amazing plants," she explained, "it just gives me satisfaction and pleasure."
Read, CSUF's greenhouse complex manager, has worked at the university for almost two decades but said things got a lot busier during the pandemic when the popularity of house plants exploded.
"Students started coming in and asking me about plants using Latin names," he said with delight. "And that just brought a smile to my face, right? It's like, 'Yes, the next generation is learning these things!'"
Victoria is still growing, and he can't wait to see what she'll do next.
The possibilities for his next cultivation project are endless.
"I mean, there's over 250,000 described plants," Read explained, "and there's even more out there, and I will never learn them all."
But if Victoria proved anything, it's that he'll definitely keep trying.