« I don't really know how deep soil needs to be for plant roots etc.« @Ger1993 I didn’t put any soil on the various floors of my pond. I was advised to plant my plants in specific planting baskets, using specialist pond soil (apparently this isn’t as rich as ordinary compost) Then top dressed them with gravel and dropped them in. I repotted the loosestrife after a year, in much the same way I would have repotted any plant that has outgrown its pot.
Eventually, 'soil' accumulates on the bottom of a pond, and that's perfectly normal. Plants will often seed into it. Wildlife will use it - like dragonfly larvae for instance. It's where frogs will overwinter. It's good practice to net it in autumn to prevent too much foliage landing in it though, especially if there are deciduous trees etc nearby.
Like @dappledshade , I put plants in baskets as it's easier to then divide and generally maintain them. Some will seed into the debris too, which is always a bonus. I've got a couple of little water hawthorns which I've potted up to site further away from the parent plant. Oxygenators get chucked in, as I said earlier, but you can pop them in a little pot with gravel if they're ones that need some depth.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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@Ger1993 I didn’t put any soil on the various floors of my pond.
I was advised to plant my plants in specific planting baskets, using specialist pond soil (apparently this isn’t as rich as ordinary compost)
Then top dressed them with gravel and dropped them in.
I repotted the loosestrife after a year, in much the same way I would have repotted any plant that has outgrown its pot.
Plants will often seed into it. Wildlife will use it - like dragonfly larvae for instance. It's where frogs will overwinter. It's good practice to net it in autumn to prevent too much foliage landing in it though, especially if there are deciduous trees etc nearby.
Like @dappledshade , I put plants in baskets as it's easier to then divide and generally maintain them. Some will seed into the debris too, which is always a bonus. I've got a couple of little water hawthorns which I've potted up to site further away from the parent plant. Oxygenators get chucked in, as I said earlier, but you can pop them in a little pot with gravel if they're ones that need some depth.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Thanks a million for all your help and suggestions everyone!
Hopefully this thread will still be here in a year or so and I can upload some pictures of what is hopefully an 'established' pond.
Thanks again.
And remember during these strange times, a spade or shovel can be a useful tool to keep any coughers or sneezers away from you! 🙃