Creating a Water Garden: Tips & Ideas

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Astronuc
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There's already a thread on conventional (terrestrial/earthen) gardens, so I thought I'd start on water gardens. I was visiting a local nursery last week, and they have a really water garden set up (about 2 m x 3-4 m) in the shape of an irregular oval.

Anyway, some members have posted pictures or metioned water gardens (ponds) in the past.

I'd certainly do one if the land was a little different.


Here's some examples (no endorsement expressed or implied) - http://www.lilypons.com/

http://watergarden.com/

http://www.glencarwatergardens.com

http://www.aquascapeinc.com/index2.php



And there is plenty of advice/help on-line:

http://www.coopext.colostate.edu/4dmg/Water/water.htm

http://www.pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/horticulture/watergarden.htm


Maybe I'll just have to do one.
 
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You can get just about everything you need at home improvement stores. I have been thinking about taking the easy route and use one of the pond liners that are available.
 
I've been seeing a lot of the hard plastic ones around. They can be really nice, but so often the people putting them in are too lazy to dig a hole. They plop it right on the ground and maybe pile up dirt or rocks around it. It ends up looking like a dirt mound with a little pond on the top - not at all natural!

I really like the "disappearing" fountains.

http://img528.imageshack.us/img528/6222/fountux6.jpg

Granted they aren't natural either, but who said aesthetics have to be consistent?
 
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I want to buy some water lilly plants and have a water garden but I FEAR mosquitos.

( I refer to a little container of course, but that would be standing water)
 
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A good friend of mine converted his swimming pool into a lush pond. He was featured in Better Homes and Gardens magazine.

http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/6039/title2page9un.jpg

page52pu.jpg


This is what it looked like before he transformed it.

beforepond6x6cw9.jpg
 
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~christina~ said:
I want to buy some water lilly plants and have a water garden but I FEAR mosquitos.

( I refer to a little container of course, but that would be standing water)


There are a number of products on the market to treat the water for mosquitoes. The best ones are microbial larvacides which use a harmless bacteria that only attacks mosquito larvae.

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/11893/product.web
 
~christina~ said:
I want to buy some water lilly plants and have a water garden but I FEAR mosquitos.

( I refer to a little container of course, but that would be standing water)

In our old house, the previous owner built a concrete pond that caught rainwater. It was a mosquito magnet. I thought about putting in chemicals that kill mosquitoes, but I worried that would make my dog sick (she was always lapping up pond water).

So, I tried goldfish. I went to the pet store and bought feeder fish, just your basic goldfish - 11 for a dollar. What a bargain! They ate all the larvae in just a couple days. Over the summer, a couple died, but several survived and kept the pond mosquito-free.

The next winter when the pond froze over, I thought the remaining fish would die. Nope! They somehow can survive being frozen. As the years went by, the fish evolved their color from orange to black (survival of the most difficult to see!).

Years of mosquito control, and it only cost me one dollar!