Hello - I'm a newbie gardener and recently had a wildlife pond put in. It's lovely, but several times the aquatic plants have come loose and had to be re-anchored. This has caused silt/sludge/soil from their baskets to cover the bottom of the pond, which looks pretty grungy. Anything I can do about this? (I have tadpoles, by the way, so don't want to endanger them).
Wildlife ponds are great. Mine is coming up for five years old. You cannot have both a wildlife pond and one that looks pristine beautiful....you kind of have to get used to it not being clear like a swimming pool with nothing on the bottom. Gunge and sediment will accumulate on the bottom but this is vital for the microbes and larvae and the ecology of the pond. Just let it be.
Once the plant roots are established the plants will not loosen in their pots so the advice given re pebbles is sound. Hessian I don't find is that good; it rots pretty quickly.
Based in Sussex, I garden to encourage as many birds to my garden as possible.
Hello - I'm a newbie gardener and recently had a wildlife pond put in. It's lovely, but several times the aquatic plants have come loose and had to be re-anchored. This has caused silt/sludge/soil from their baskets to cover the bottom of the pond, which looks pretty grungy. Anything I can do about this? (I have tadpoles, by the way, so don't want to endanger them).
I have just repotted some of my pond plants so will not need to go to the gym for a few months! I always line the mesh baskets with a square of hessian to help retain the soil. The hessian soon rots away. A good layer of gravel on top also helps to weight the pots and retain soil. Putting pebbles on top of the gravel will help prevent the fish if you have any, especially koi, and any birds etc. from rooting around and lifting the plants. Aquatic soil should always be used. It is very fine, lots of gravel in it and low nutrients as pond plants do not need feeding. I have lifted, divided and repotted my pygmy waterlilies, iris and reed. I soak my pots in a large plastic container before putting them back in the pond which helps to settle the soil and stops the cloud of soil which washes out of newly potted plants from going into the pond. Having recently given my daughter a pygmy waterlily for her birthday, I was able to donate a basket of iris and another of reed, which the damsel flies love, to their rejuvanted miniscule pond. If you look at natural ponds, clay pits in my case or riversides etc, they are never manicured or pristine so a reproduction in a garden should really reflect the casual, slightly untidy look, unless you want the severely formal look. We have to let go of our urge to control and allow nature to dictate what is appropriate. My pond is only 6ft in diametre and 4ft deep, with a shelf for baskets and a slope for newts, frogs and toads etc to get in and out. The 4ft depth means I never have to worry about my fish or any of the other pond inhabitants from dying during a long hard spell during winter. A pond brings so much interest to a garden, even an upturned dustbin lid will attract wildlife. Enjoy your pond.
Thank you, @Joyce Goldenlily, for all the helpful info. My pond is very slightly smaller than yours and I don't have fish, but yes, that 'cloud of soil' describes perfectly what happened in mine!
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I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Once the plant roots are established the plants will not loosen in their pots so the advice given re pebbles is sound. Hessian I don't find is that good; it rots pretty quickly.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I always line the mesh baskets with a square of hessian to help retain the soil. The hessian soon rots away. A good layer of gravel on top also helps to weight the pots and retain soil. Putting pebbles on top of the gravel will help prevent the fish if you have any, especially koi, and any birds etc. from rooting around and lifting the plants.
Aquatic soil should always be used. It is very fine, lots of gravel in it and low nutrients as pond plants do not need feeding.
I have lifted, divided and repotted my pygmy waterlilies, iris and reed. I soak my pots in a large plastic container before putting them back in the pond which helps to settle the soil and stops the cloud of soil which washes out of newly potted plants from going into the pond.
Having recently given my daughter a pygmy waterlily for her birthday, I was able to donate a basket of iris and another of reed, which the damsel flies love, to their rejuvanted miniscule pond.
If you look at natural ponds, clay pits in my case or riversides etc, they are never manicured or pristine so a reproduction in a garden should really reflect the casual, slightly untidy look, unless you want the severely formal look. We have to let go of our urge to control and allow nature to dictate what is appropriate. My pond is only 6ft in diametre and 4ft deep, with a shelf for baskets and a slope for newts, frogs and toads etc to get in and out. The 4ft depth means I never have to worry about my fish or any of the other pond inhabitants from dying during a long hard spell during winter.
A pond brings so much interest to a garden, even an upturned dustbin lid will attract wildlife.
Enjoy your pond.