How to Turn Your Pond into a Water Garden
Plants Make the Difference in a BIG Way
The two word phrase "Water Garden" is a bit of a catchall unless you're a purist. Now I'm not that way inclined but there is a difference and I do tend to mix my terms. So what's the difference?
Let start off with pond. Essentially any hole dug into the ground or created above ground within a closed wall environment is a pond of course. It wont take long for such a pond to become stagnant murky and horrible.
When fish are added to a pond it then becomes a fish pond and if those fish are koi and only koi then it's called a koi pond. And believe me Koi Ponds are different and so are their owners. But in a nice way.
Then there are wildlife ponds which are ponds created to encourage as much natural aquatic activity as possible. These are in many respects the most interesting ponds.
Click the image to enlarge.
And then there are the ponds built around a stream where the pond is essentially acting as a reservoir for the water being circulated around the stream. It is the stream that's the focal point not the pond.
For me a water garden is an amalgam or mixture of all these but one specific and focused approach makes the Water Garden different and the water gardener different too.
A water garden is constructed around a central theme of plants.
Everything else is secondary.
Of course in my view at least every water garden can be improved by adding a few fish including koi. A water garden can incorporate the best features of a wild life pond as well. And without a doubt a slowly-flowing, meandering stream cascading down a gently sloped riffle or waterfall adds excitement, sound, an ever changing view, and real character to any garden. A stream also creates an opportunity for a whole host of other aquatic creatures to join you in your water garden joy. These are those creatures that enjoy running water and live and hide beneath pebbles.
Next time you're close to a natural stream lift up a few pebbles and look on the underside. If the water in the stream is good quality you will see an amazing variety of insects in their nymphal form. They will wriggle and scatter as you lift the pebble from the water. These insects are the major food source for fish in rivers and streams.
So we're going to talk a bit about plants but not so much the selection but the impact of plants and why they are so important and why they make a pond a water garden.
To help you make the right plant selection go to my site as follows. You'll see a great deal of information on different plant types and a complete list to select from.
If you're in a hurry and just want to buy some plants then go here ...
USA ... Beautiful plants, great deals
UK ... Try Bradshaws in York.
The impact of plants in a garden pond
1. The first and almost immediate impact is that plants will attract insects.
These insects will use the plants as food and as a place to lay eggs on or under.
Many insects can only escape the pond environment by climbing up a plant stem. For example dragonfly and damselfly nymphs. For these insects the ideal plant is a sedge or reed type of plant. Dragonflies also use the stems of reeds or sedges to perch and attract females of the species.
The insects found naturally in ponds become a food source for other and larger insects (like diving beetles, water boatmen) as well as frogs and newts.
Frogs lay eggs which become tadpoles that then also become part of the aquatic food chain.
The frogs attract birds that stalk them ... birds like herons.
The plants create a natural bridging point between land and water allowing creatures to come and go at will.
Water attracts midges and mosquitoes because this is where they lay their eggs and spend a considerable portion of their lives. Goldfish, in fact all pond fish eat the larvae of mosquitoes so ponds with fish don't have serious problems with mosquitoes.
2. The second important impact is the water garden becomes a smorgasbord of food for fish and birds. This means a well established water garden normally requires little in terms of extra feeding. And the less food fed by hand the better the water quality will be.
3. A third very important benefit from the use of plants is that nitrate build up from the metabolic processes taking pace in the pond all day every day are reduced since the plants take up the nitrates as a fertilizer. This means less water needs to be pumped out of the pond to control nitrate levels and the pond remains more stable. Stability or a state of equilibrium is an important objective iin any pond.
4. Plants add oxygen to pond water and as readers have already learned a pond can't have too much oxygen.
In summary do make the effort of turning your pond into a real water garden. You will then see the following benefits ...
Much greater enjoyment Much less pond maintenance through greater pond stability Fewer fish health problems Lower fish food bills The addition of colour and form ... your pond will become a true oasis in your garden.
