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Ponds

gills gardengills garden Posts: 8
in The potting shed
Has anybody got any photos of there pond, am looking for ideas on how to build one, my garden is South facing. And fairly large wondering what to use and were to put it ect ..
Thanks guys  

Posts

  • treehugger80treehugger80 Posts: 1,923
    in an area which get full sun for a couple of hours a day but not much more, otherwise it warms up too much and warm water doesn't hold as much oxygen as cold water. Also the bigger the better when it comes to volume, surface area should also be large compared to depth

    do you want a wildlife pond, fish/koi pond, formal pool? as this is the first thing to decide as we can assist you from there
  • gills gardengills garden Posts: 8
    Treehugger80
    Thanks for the reply yes I would be going for a wild life pond maybe with a little fountain just love the idea of sitting by my pond and the sound of running water in the summer 
  • treehugger80treehugger80 Posts: 1,923
    edited October 2018
    ok, so wildlife pond it is.

    you need to make sure that 1/3 of the surface is covered by mid summer, this usually means water lily's or emergent that shade in the afternoon (so south side of the pond) most people go for water lily's because they want to be able to see the pond, one word of warning water lily's don't particularly like moving water (like a fountain)

    you need oxygenators (choose carefully as some take over your pond) and then plants around the side (emergent or marginal) so reeds (not bulrush it takes over), iris (not flag iris it takes over) marsh marigold, bog bean, globe flower that sort of thing, that will grow in the water and then next to the pond you can do a bog or wet garden with ferns, hosta's - that sort of thing.

    the bigger you can make the pond the better, if you're not putting fish in then it only need to be 60-70cm deep and make sure there is a way for animals that fall in accidentally to get out, most people do a 'beach' of pebbles
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    edited October 2018
    Heres some pics of ours.
    August 2014 - 2016  it doesn’t take long!  It’s in full sun all day long. 















    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • ZeroZero1ZeroZero1 Posts: 577
    edited October 2018
    World of Water, the chain, do a free excellent catalogue that also explains all your options. It's well worth a visit to a local branch to check out the gear. 

    http://worldofwater.com/pond/
  • BenCottoBenCotto Posts: 4,718
    Two pictures of our pond taken in late May before the lawn turned into a dust bowl. The pond is around 16’ x 13’ and is in a south facing garden. It was dug out in February 2017 and filled two months later.








    Rutland, England
  • RedwingRedwing Posts: 1,511
    If you want a wildlife pond it is important which plants you choose.  The RSPB and WWTs have some good recommendations of what to plant and equally important, what to avoid.  Check their websites.  Also leave out fish as they tend to eat the eggs and tadpoles of amphibians.

    We made a largish wildlife pond, 14m x 8m a year ago.  Here are a few pictures.  The plants have had only one seasons growth.  I'm hoping it'll look more filled in after another year.  You'll be amazed  at how quickly wildlife moves in. First two pictures just over a year ago.





    The following was taken about two months ago.





    Based in Sussex, I garden to encourage as many birds to my garden as possible.
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