The Great Pond Project

[afishamongmany]

So, a couple of years back I started digging a hole in the garden. This year may well see this hole become a finished 'water feature'. Some years back I had the privilege of bring in to being a small wood and now, if The Lord allows, I hope to bring into being a watery ecosystem teeming with life and exuding tranquility.
Does anyone have any experience with ponds? Do you have one? Have you made one?
This is planned to be about 3x4-ish metres, oval-ish, 50cm deep in the middle and lined with a butyl rubber liner to retain the water. At the moment I'm constructing the outflow.
All information and advice gratefully received.

This is looking from the inflow. The breeze blocks are 50cm long, to give some idea of scale.

This is looking from the outflow (the 3 breeze blocks) across to the inflow. The long straight edge is 3m long and is resting on pegs to show the desired water level.
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[~Anastasia~]

No experience with building them, but that is a great idea!

 

[Goodbook]

No, but looks interesting. Have a book on it but no experience so dont want to put you wrong.

Are you going to put water lilies in it? Another good waterside plant is flag iris.

 

[afishamongmany]

Yes Goodbook I will try some water lilies and hope to have a marshy patch where the out flow is.
The out flow will be 'naturlised' with flat stones

Now working on the inflow basin; The two pipes bring in rain water from a large roof area. Our house and a nieghbour's barn, probably at least 150m².

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[afishamongmany]

Ok inflow basin just about ready for putting down the concrete tomorrow.

 

[brinny]

Awesome!!!! Praying all goes well...

keep the pictures coming!!!

 

[Kenny'sID]

So, this will be lined with concrete?

I did one on the edge of Jax Fl. I had a lot that was low in the back. It was fine/dry enough in the front for my trailer, but parts of the back would be covered with water in times of rain...I decided to make some lemonade out of the lemon.

I first rented a dinky backhoe, then decided to go for something big, I mean real big for me anyway. So big my feet were trembling when I first got on it, since I'd never operated something like that, but I just did it. It took me about month to dig because it was cheap equipment that they had to keep repairing, but I still saved a few thousand and ended up with a fantastic, about 40x90ft pond 6 or so ft deep. Some fish came in on their own...that's how wet it was back there, but I stocked it with bream, catfish, warmouth and regular bass, even tried some specs (crappie). The warmouth got bigger than any I'd ever seen, all the fish were unusually fat, not sure why. I did keep a bug light over it 24/7 so maybe that had a little something to do with it.

Surrounded with shrubs, thick St Augustine grass, elephant ears, some banana plants that actually bared fruit, as well as a few fruit trees, and shaded by a few tall pines. Everything grew wonderfully because the water level was about 3ft below, and the shade was just right with the pines.

I recall walking around the edge (it was very swimable) a few yrs after it was done, as it took some time to clear up, and saw a school of tiny fish, got a net so I could see what they were...thousands of healthy baby bass. It was then I knew I had something. It surpassed all expectations. Brought in King Fishers, Ibis, and have you ever been swimming with an alligator? I have. Yep, he just showed up, thought I was seeing a frog sticking out of the water, till a 5ft gator thrashed *loudly*, I almost jumped out of my skin.

I likely could have actually raised enough fish to easily feed myself with a few changes. Now I'm sad, that opportunity where conditions were just right will probably never come around again, but I have had plans of something small with a rubber liner.

Your going to love yours. Once you get past construction, you just can't go wrong with the idea of it.

I miss it....a lot, wish I had some pics Thanks for the opportunity to go on about it.

I should add, until I moved, the plan was to move the trailer that was about 150ft away from the pond, right up to the pond, build an add on living room as a start to a small house, with double sliding glass doors opening to a deck going right out over the pond, so I could be with it all the time. Did I mention I really liked that pond?

 

[afishamongmany]

Your going to love yours. Once you get past construction, you just can't go wrong with the idea of it.

Hello there Kenny, Hey thanks that was really interesting to hear.
No alligators here I'm glad to say . And not big enough for swimming. Bananas sort of grow around here but you'll never get any fruit off them.
So was your big pond lined or was there all year round standing water?
The inflow basin, as in the photo, will have a concrete base and the breeze block walls will be filled with concrete. Its purpose it to raise the water level of the incoming water to cover the mouths of the pipes and drop the water into the pond (about 15cm) to give it some airation. We do get long hot dry periods most summers so my concern is will the water level stay high enough when that happens?
Go well
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[Kenny'sID]

Bananas sort of grow around here but you'll never get any fruit off them.

It was a little too cold for mine too, but I learned they could be wrapped in news paper for winter, and it worked. For colder climates, the roots are very shallow, and the stalk has so much water in it, they can be dug, maybe leave a wrapped root ball, or not and shoved anywhere where it's above freezing, then replanted (it was easier than wrapping them. 2 or three yrs to make fruit, mine did it after one winters wrap.

So was your big pond lined or was there all year round standing water?

Standing water, but I checked it out on google maps a few yeas ago ant it appeared dry. Being so close to a big city, they could have easily drained the swamp fro building, ruining the conditions, but I'm not positive it was even dry. It dried almost completely 1 time over the 13/14yrs it/I was there and I used a sprinkler to add water and aireate it. That could be an option for you, or if worse comes to worse, a rubber liner... still well worth the trouble.

I think a clay bottom is best for what you are doing, whether added or natural for the area. Yours may well work out just the way it is though....just saying any extra work/expense will be well rewarded.

Oops, I see yours will be lined, so with something that small, your good to go, and may have to add water on rare occasion, if at all. With the steps and all, looks like you researched it well so...

 

[Goodbook]

Also..could grow taro if your area is warm enough they like wet feet.

 

[Kenny'sID]

Also..could grow taro if your area is warm enough they like wet feet.

I'll second that one, even highly recommend it. If you want a tropical look, even for a few months out of the year in colder zones....

I used to sell almost exclusively elephant ears on ebay (edensbounty), and the taro's, at least colocasia/alocasia, and most likely the Xanthasoma and other types (the varieties of those are too many to list) were reported by customers to grow in the northern most states, and grow well, even if it's just for a short time. Some of them are breathtaking, from huge to tiny, and the bulbs can be stored through the winter months.

 

[afishamongmany]

Also..could grow taro if your area is warm enough they like wet feet.

I'll second that one, even highly recommend it. If you want a tropical look, even for a few months out of the year in colder zones....

Hi Goodbook, Kenny, Yea sounds interesting. I'll research Taro when the time comes. Not one I know anything about and not seen it around here. I don't want too much exotica but something big and showy in summer is appealing. The marshy area will probably not be much more than 4m² so maybe a dwarf taro
Still working on the inlet basin, photos later in the week maybe.
Good gardening
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[Humble me Lord]

Just discovered this thread, i'm fairly new to CF.
Was wondering if you are having a circulation pump, i.e., with water flowing in and out of pond for natural plant and rock filtration?
I have always wanted a pond like that, but I am in the north end of planting zone 3, so impractical. I'm so blessed that a beaver made me one right above my culverts on my creek crossing. I just pulled the trail cam off that I had down there and had many pictures of deer, a mallard mating pair and a wood duck. Also the beaver coming to inspect the dam at night.
I have seen that people keep the algae clear in these ponds with barley straw bales, just a thought.

 

[afishamongmany]

Just discovered this thread, i'm fairly new to CF.
Was wondering if you are having a circulation pump, i.e., with water flowing in and out of pond for natural plant and rock filtration?
I have always wanted a pond like that, but I am in the north end of planting zone 3, so impractical. I'm so blessed that a beaver made me one right above my culverts on my creek crossing. I just pulled the trail cam off that I had down there and had many pictures of deer, a mallard mating pair and a wood duck. Also the beaver coming to inspect the dam at night.
I have seen that people keep the algae clear in these ponds with barley straw bales, just a thought.

Hello HmL,
Welcome to CF and to this horticultural hideaway byway.
No I don't plan to have any circulation pump. Assuming that the pond holds water, I'm hoping rainwater inflow will be enough to keep it 'fresh'. But probably in hot dry periods yea algae may be a problem. I've heard of the barley straw treatment so I'll try to source some. Not something they grow much around here.
Wow beavers for neighbours, that's cool. Do you have to protect your garden trees?
I'm going to start a garden wildlife thread, how about some pictures. The biggest things around here are roe deer and wild boar. Never see the boar though, except dead when the local hunters get them.

Good gardening
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[Humble me Lord]

Thanks for the warm welcome
Well, we don't have to worry about the beaver getting our trees around the house, the good Lord blessed us with 80 acres and the pond is in the north 40. We can't see it from the house, so it is a good excuse for a nature walk !
We have only been here going on 3 years, and have planted many fruit trees in the back yard. I didn't have the plastic trunk bark protection on all of the apple trees and this past winter, deer-mice chewed the bark all the way around on 2 six footers.

 

[afishamongmany]

Yes the project is still alive, just (like me) sloow.
The liner and underlay are on site and the basin just needs a little bit more shaping.
Today we are getting enough rain to almost fill the pond to the hoped for level. In the photos it's about 10cms short. Depending on how long the water takes to drain away and whether we then get 2-3 dry days, looking to install the liner next week.
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[*LILAC]

This looks like a great idea! We have an overflowing well and it's quite marshy in that area due to the excess water. Either we fix the well, or we build a pond! We certainly have the water to do so.

 

[afishamongmany]

This looks like a great idea! We have an overflowing well and it's quite marshy in that area due to the excess water. Either we fix the well, or we build a pond! We certainly have the water to do so.

So Lilac, is your husband on board for this idea?
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[afishamongmany]

Do you mean you have a spring or does your well seasonally overflow?
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[*LILAC]

It overfloweth constantly. Year round. We hit a good vein when it was drilled. I have yet to convince him to do a pond. It's been mentioned but that's about it.