I agree with steering clear of the thuggy yellow iris. There are smaller iris species that won't take over. I do like water mint and am happy to pull it out by the bucketful but it can be invasive as mentioned.
The best way to stop a pond going stagnant is positioning. It needs a decent amount of sun for the plants to establish and keep it healthy.
When I was starting out building the pond I bought this book, read it cover to cover, there was 10% voucher off the pond liner that I bought, also with a lifetime guarantee. It depends what you want as to what you put round the edges, we laid the liner then the turf back over the top. I did buy some special edging but wasn’t keen on it so removed it and let it grow naturally. If you have a posh laid out garden some people use slabs, I don't like them, I prefer the natural look. This was it with the edging,
This was it 2 years later, I’ve never had a bit of liner on show.
Liners are much easier from the digging purposes, it doesn’t have to be exact and you can get your shelf levels as you want them, pots tend to slip of the preformed ones. But, it’s yours and I’m sure you’ll make it nice whatever you choose.
Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor.
I saved the above pic off the forum I think some time ago as I always fancied having a pond albeit a small one. It may be of some help to you but if you want a good one I don't think you can fault @Lyn's. That's in my dreams!
Hi @B3 I built a pond exactly a year ago. I didn’t have any prior knowledge but after lots of research I used a good quality pond liner which as others have mentioned means you can build various shelf levels for plants which are needed to oxygenate the water and prevent it going stagnant. I wanted my pond to be wildlife friendly so edged it with rocks to provide hidey holes for little creatures. It looked bare and horrible initially but a year on and it looks just how I wanted it to look. It’s teeming with wildlife like dragonflies, damselflies and newts. A little vole lives under a rock and comes out to drink as do hedgehogs and, squirrels and birds. I created a shallow, gravelly area at one end and planted plants and grasses around the pond edge to overspill the rocks. Hope some of that helps. Last September when it was just finished. Today
Thanks everyone. I was wondering whether , if I used slabs, letting them s overhang the pond a bit would hide the liner ?
If the slabs overhanging the edge might have people walk on them then they will need to be supported so they don't fall into the pond. I had something similar happen when a visitor to the garden went closer to edge than I had expected people to do and the large stone where they stood near the edge moved into the water in a way I did not foresee. I was able to mix some concrete and fix the stone in place again and the area now looks more uneven and less inviting to walk on so it has not been a longer term issue but it made me think if I was building another pond and expected someone to walk near a particular edge then it would make sense for the structure to be designed to support them. You could run the liner under the slab but I'd be inclined to only have the edge projecting over the water a short distance so it does not lift like a see saw if someone went too close to the water. There also is the wildlife climbing out of the pond if it were to fall in issues, with an overhanging edge potentially being very difficult for some things to mange as a way to get out of the pond.
The problem with liner being revealed by dropping water levels can also be dealt with by topping up the water and I saw one plan of a pond that included a float valve like the one you get in a toilet cistern hidden out of view that allowed the water get topped up automatically.
Has anyone tried this, with success, or otherwise? I'd be interested to hear your views please. I'm not sure about stagnant water becoming a new home for mosquitoes and other unwanted guests!
@CDouch. That wonderful! You should be so proud! I was wondering why you had a chandelier in the pond and then realised it was a reflection of the bird feeder🙄 The pond will be in a slightly raised bed where we put the topsoil we had removed when we made a small seating area and put a one sleeper layer to hold the soil back. so nobody is likely to walk there. I won't waste the topsoil but I have to decide what to do with it.@robairdmacraignil @Plantminded I've really go to do it now haven't I? No wimping out and bunging in a couple of roses instead.😏
Has anyone tried this, with success, or otherwise? I'd be interested to hear your views please. I'm not sure about stagnant water becoming a new home for mosquitoes and other unwanted guests!
I have a pond in a pot and a pond in a window box. I am allergic to mosquitoes so I use mosquito dunks/bits to keep the ponds mozi-free. Works very well. For a pot pond you just need a new grains. So a box goes a long way.
You can always add a pond pump to a pot if you want to. I've had my first pot about eight years and it falls between the stools of being a wildlife pond, a water feature and a bird bath. It doesn't succeed well at any of the three. I have a pump/small fountain affair (Hozelock) and enjoy the sound of the falling water. Frogs and mozis aren't bothered by moving water.
My advice to you would be to decide clearly which you want your pot to be and design accordingly. At about 30cm my pond is too shallow to do much with. If you don't have much space I would go for depth over width if you want to put plants in it. Decide if you want to sink the pot in the ground or not. Just add some kind of ramp so critters can get out if they fall in.
As mentioned above, go as large as you can, and esp as deep.
@Plantminded I've really go to do it now haven't I? No wimping out and bunging in a couple of roses instead.😏
Yes, all eyes are on you now @B3! I'm sure you'll give it a go and create a wildlife haven to be proud of!
Thank you very much for your detailed reply @Fire, it was very helpful. Lots to think about. Having visited my local aquatic plants supplier this afternoon I realised that there's no point starting until the spring - the only plant providing winter interest was barred Horsetail which I think is best avoided!
Posts
The best way to stop a pond going stagnant is positioning. It needs a decent amount of sun for the plants to establish and keep it healthy.
It depends what you want as to what you put round the edges, we laid the liner then the turf back over the top.
I did buy some special edging but wasn’t keen on it so removed it and let it grow naturally.
If you have a posh laid out garden some people use slabs, I don't like them, I prefer the natural look.
This was it with the edging,
This was it 2 years later, I’ve never had a bit of liner on show.
Liners are much easier from the digging purposes, it doesn’t have to be exact and you can get your shelf levels as you want them, pots tend to slip of the preformed ones.
But, it’s yours and I’m sure you’ll make it nice whatever you choose.
Has anyone tried this, with success, or otherwise? I'd be interested to hear your views please. I'm not sure about stagnant water becoming a new home for mosquitoes and other unwanted guests!
The pond will be in a slightly raised bed where we put the topsoil we had removed when we made a small seating area and put a one sleeper layer to hold the soil back. so nobody is likely to walk there. I won't waste the topsoil but I have to decide what to do with it.@robairdmacraignil
@Plantminded I've really go to do it now haven't I? No wimping out and bunging in a couple of roses instead.😏
Thank you very much for your detailed reply @Fire, it was very helpful. Lots to think about. Having visited my local aquatic plants supplier this afternoon I realised that there's no point starting until the spring - the only plant providing winter interest was barred Horsetail which I think is best avoided!