Only made the one pond so far here but since it is on a slope and I did not want water overflowing on the newly built up side further down the slope I just left a part of the pond edge a bit lower to one side where it could overflow without causing any damage. We get a lot of rain at times but have not noticed the area where it overflows getting waterlogged as the soil is fairly free draining in most of the garden here with the slope probably helping with that. I planted a weeping willow tree on the side of the pond where the water overflow is channeled as these are meant to appreciate damp ground. I think its relevant as well that the soil under the pond is kept drier by the pond liner so some of the water is likely to seep into that area as well once it goes over the edge.
In short I don't think you can stop a pond outdoors from overflowing but by leaving the edge a bit lower at some point you can decide where the overflowing water is channeled to. If you did have a problem with drainage in your garden you could potentially build a soak away at the point you channel the water to or as someone else mentioned have a bog garden with damp loving plants.
Many thanks for all the replies and advice. That's my project for the winter months, researching all about ponds. I would like fish but unfortunately, don't have the space that lots of people here seem to have. The pond will probably be roughly 4/5 feet long by 3/4 wide at most. My reason (other than dogs/grandchildren) for raising it is that I want to "future proof" it. I thought that if something happened (to my health) in the future, I could still enjoy the pond if it was raised rather than at ground level.
Posts