Budget Water Garden Gardening by the Yard : Episode GBY-402 -- More Projects »
My next decision was whether to use a rigid or a flexible liner. Rigid fiberglass or plastic liners come in a variety of shapes and sizes and last almost forever ( figure A). They range in price to several hundred dollars and are available at nurseries and home-and-garden centers.
Flexible liners allow you to create practically any shape you want. The best are made of butyl rubber. They can be pretty pricey, but they last up to 30 years. PVC liners are also available but don't last as long.
You can have a pond without a pump, filter or lights. Placing enough plants in it should keep the water relatively clean. I'm creating a small waterfall, so I'll need a pump and a filter. I haven't decided whether to put a light in the pond, which looks cool but unnatural, or just to place a few low-voltage lights around the pond to dress it up a bit. But with the power in place, I can make those decisions later. Now it's time to dig.
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Figure B
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Figure C
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Figure D
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Figure E
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Figure F
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I'm going to pile the dirt up next to the hole so I can create the hill I need for the waterfall and won't have to haul all the dirt somewhere else. The hole is shallow at one end and gradually deepens to about two feet deep, the ideal depth for over-wintering fish and growing water lilies. I have also gently sloped the sides toward the center and made the bottom fairly flat (figure B). You can create a shallow shelf, about eight to 10 inches, along the edge of the pond for shallow-water plants. The next step is to use a level to verify that the tops are level. Remove any rocks and roots that may tear the liner. Add a one-inch layer of builder's sand in the hole and pack it down (figure C). With the sand in place, lay the liner in the hole with the center at the deepest point, extending the liner up and over the top of the hole roughly a foot or so and up the hill where the waterfall will be (figure D). Now fill the hole with water. As you do, smooth out any wrinkles that may appear in the liner, starting at the bottom and working your way up along the sides (figure E).Edge the pond with stone (figure F). For a formal pond most people use paving slabs, which in many cases must be cut to size and secured with mortar. All kinds of rocks are available for water gardens. Choose yours based on your taste and your budget. Consider using rocks native to your area or those that complement your home or landscape. Gnarled limestone is cool because it's full of holes. A mix of flat and rounded stones creates a nice effect, much like what you'd find along the edge of a mountain stream.To create an informal look, lay edging rocks at random, filling the gaps with small boulders and pebbles. Add a few plants here and there in the gaps. Creating a natural look is harder than you think. Just put the rocks down, stand back and take a look, then move them until you like what you see.
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Figure G
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Figure H
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Figure I
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Figure J
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Creating a natural-looking waterfall requires a pump (figure G) to bring the water up from the pond. Set a submersible unit on a rock a few inches off the bottom so it doesn't rest in the mud and sediment that will accumulate. Attach a hose to the outlet so you can send the water wherever you want (figure H). The filter (figure I) is installed in front of the pump so that the water is first drawn into the filter, where it's cleaned in a two-stage filtration system. Most filters come with a small packet of beneficial bacteria (figure J) to be used to inoculate the system and clean the water. A pump that moves 300 to 500 gallons per hour is fine. With the pump and filter in place, attach the hose to the pump outlet and run it up to the top of the waterfall. I've created a stepped pattern with rocks so the water should fall gently to oxygenate the water without disturbing the plants or creating too much noise. Let the water settle for several hours, even a few days, so that any dissolved chlorine gas will be driven off. You could use a chemical dechlorinator and plant within a few hours. There's quite a list of hardy and tropical aquatic plants available from nurseries or by mail. Your choice of plants depends on how big and deep your pond is. Create a balance of 1/3 open water to 2/3 plant cover. That way you can enjoy the plants and the reflections in the water. The shade provided by the plants' leaf surfaces will provide shelter for fish and reduce the growth of algae.The most popular aquatic plants include hardy water lilies, most of which need water that's 12 to 48 inches deep. They will spread up to three feet or more, so select just one for a small pond. Lotuses are great too and will grow in only four inches of water. Include various irises, which bloom like those in your garden. Marginal plants such as rushes and papyrus grow in only two to four inches of water. Plant deep marginals from five to 30 inches deep. And of course, there are the floaters, including water hyacinth and water lettuce. Finally, there are oxygenators, the cheapest plants you can buy and arguably the most important in any pond because not only do they oxygenate the water but also serve as a food source for fish. Planting depths are measured from the top of the pot to the water level. Deep-water and marginal aquatic plants are grown in pots placed in the water at the proper depth. Pots are placed on bricks, and one brick is removed at a time until the pots are resting on the bottom. You can set marginal and deep-marginal plants in at the proper depth, place them on a shelf or put them on an inverted pot or a saucer so they sit at the right depth. Add some fish. Several kinds are available, but the most popular are goldfish and koi, basically fancy carp. In a small pond, stick with goldfish. Fish don't like sudden temperature changes, so first float the bag in the pond for about a half hour, then release the fish into the water. It's fine if the fish hide and don't surface for a few hours or days, even for food: they'll eat algae and minute animals of one form or another. Feed your fish at least once, maybe even twice, a day when they are most active, during spring and summer. If it gets really hot where you live and the water temperature climbs to 80 degrees or more, cut back or stop feeding for a while. In the winter, if you live in a freeze zone, you can stop feeding your fish altogether unless you get a prolonged warm spell. Your fish will probably head for the deepest water and stay there in hibernation.
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