Water Garden Hints

I waited a long time to get a pond in the backyard. Finally in 2005 I helped my husband install a 250-gallon preformed pond. Almost immediately we thought it should have been bigger. So keep that in mind if or when you install a pond. We struggled the first year with algae. After some research we found that small ponds like ours tend to have that problem. So after trying several unsuccessful ideas including barley straw, aquatic plants and coloring the water using a dye made for treating pond water. We finally invested in a UV Filter. Most of the time the UV filter handles the algae problem, but on occasion after a heavy rain I will use a safe for plant and fish algae relief you can find a your local hardware or home improvement stores.

This year though I’ve had problems getting my water lilies to grow. I finally realized the problem was they were not getting enough light. I’m not sure how I will solve that problem but have all winter to figure it out. With fewer plants I worried about the fish eating birds spotting my 7 goldfish and did my best to provide some cover around the edges of the pond with other plants and in the center of the pond by replaced some of the PVC pipes back into the pond. (I had removed them when a Snowy Egret ate our last fish.) So far the fish have survived the summer with no going missing.

With the rainy summer I found I had to clean the ponds filter a lot more often than previous summers. Run off from the yard found its way into the pond. I thought it would be nice to have an extra filter & pump unit that I could exchange with the dirty one. So my husband surprised me with a new set-up so I can do just that. Now I can clean the dirty filter inside in the utility sink or outside in a shady, cooler spot.

Here are some tips for algae control. It may take several of these or all to control algae in a small pond:
1. Plan the location of your pond to take advantage of shady areas in your yard. Be careful not to locate your pond under a tree, however, as trees can drop leaves and sap that can play havoc with your pond water.
2. Construct or retrofit your pond so that water from your yard cannot flow into it.
3. Install a fine bubble aerator. The main cause of algae bloom is the lack of water movement. Placed at the deepest section of the pond and aerate the pond 24/7, you create a natural water movement in the pond,
4. Use water plants to help keep sunlight off of the water surface. Pickerelweed, Water Lilies, and Lotus are all good choices.
5. Include submersible plants such as Elodea that uses the nutrients that algae need to grow.
6. Introduce aquatic pond snails to your pond. Pond snails dine on the algae in your pond.
7. Add tadpoles to your pond. Tadpoles not only eat algae but also eat mosquito and other insect larvae.
8. Feed your fish only as much food as can be eaten within about five minutes. Food not eaten will decay and contribute to algae growth.
9. Clean the filters in your filtration system regularly. Clogged filters can dill beneficial bacteria and allow algae to flourish.
10. Use an ultraviolet light sterilizer. These sterilizers break down the cell walls of the algae, killing it.
11. Clean the surface of your pond with a skimmer or algae net.
12. Vacuum the algae from the pond with a pond vacuum.
13. Place barley straw in a location that provides a good flow of water and sunlight. The barley straw will decompose adding hydrogen peroxide to the water, killing the algae.
14. Color the water using a dye made specifically for treating pond water. The dye will color the water making it dark and harder for sunlight to penetrate to the depths of your pond.

Gardening for Birds & Other Wildlife

I was surprised and happy to see an Indigo Bunting in my yard for the first time since fall migration in 2009. One reason I was so excited was because when we moved from the Atlanta, GA area I left behind a wonderful habitat for wildlife for a yard with no habitat. I traded a yard with 30+ trees and multitude of shrubs and flowers to a yard with 2 pine trees and a scrubby small oak tree.



I was used to seeing Northern Cardinals, Robins, Brown Thrashers, Eastern Towhee’s, Carolina Wrens & Chickadee’s, Eastern Bluebirds and Redheaded woodpeckers nest in my yard. I wasn’t sure how to start when the Master Gardener coordinator from Gwinnett County, GA emailed me about the NWF Backyard Habitat program. So I went to the NWF website and started implementing their 4 steps for creating a wildlife friendly garden/backyard. When I look at my yard 9 years later it is hard to believe it is the same yard.



I attribute seeing more variety of birds in my yard to the maturing of my garden. My work over the years seems to be paying off. So I thought I’d blog about gardening for wildlife again and encourage you to give it a try if you haven’t tried it yet. I've added and rework my planting areas over the years to incorporate Food, water sources, cover from predators and nesting areas. My bluebird box was immediately occupied in Feb. 2005 when first installed and has been used every year since. Carolina Chickadees and Carolina wrens have also nested in the yard. Ruby throated Humming birds, Cardinals, Brown Thrashers, Brown headed nuthatches, Red headed woodpeckers, Downy woodpeckers, Tufted Titmouse visit my feeders and bring their babies to feed and bathe in our garden.



It's not hard to get started at all. One of the easiest things to do is just add a bird bath. This can be especially important in dry months or droughts. Here are some ideas for getting started in your own yard.





FOOD: I relied heavily on bird feeders early on and still use them to feed birds when natural food in not available and as a supplement. But I have added Native forbs*, plants, shrubs and trees provide the foliage, nectar, pollen, berries, seeds and nuts many wildlife species require to survive.Blueberries are a favorite food for the Mocking birds who visit our yard.






WATER: All wildlife needs a clean source of water for drinking and bathing and reproduction. Since I don’t have a natural lake, river, pond, ocean, stream or wetland in my backyard I use man made water sources. The easiest way of course is to use a bird bath. I have several in my yard set a different heights including one at ground level. One is a small fountain with recirculating water that small birds love. The ground level is a favorite with some of my shyer and larger visitors. We even see occasional opossums visit our 250 gallon pond with waterfall. One pool of the waterfall is shallow with flat rocks and birds will bathe and drink from it as well. The sound of that pond can attract the wildlife as well. I have recently created a small rain garden I’m hoping to create a puddling area for butterflies.





COVER: I didn't have a lot of cover when we first moved to this house. I had to wait for trees and shrubs to grow up. After 9 years they are producing a fair amount of cover and shade that was missing from my landscape. Wildlife need places to feel safe from people, predators, and inclement weather. Behind my back fence is a small wooded buffer area that provides some cover now and early on. Thickets and brush piles offer great cover with bushy leaves and thorns. I started and keep a brush pile that can be used by birds and other wildlife. Our pond is home to several frogs and we have a toad abode as well. The rock of the waterfall is home to several skinks and anoles.





PLACE TO RAISE YOUNG: Wildlife need places to reproduce, bear and raise their young, and see their young survive to adulthood, all safe from predators, bad weather and human interference. Forming a wildlife habitat creates a place for the complete life-cycle of a species to occur, from tadpole to frog, from caterpillar to butterfly. Many of the cover features in your habitat can also serve as a place for raising young. Consider a wildflower patch for butterflies to lay eggs, constructed birdhouses for nesting birds, ponds for amphibians and fish are places for raising young.





I'm also adding a host plant garden for butterflies to complement what I've been doing for the birds and other wildlife that visit our yard. I'll talk more about that in a later blog.



May is Garden for Wildlife Month and it is a great time to make your yard friendlier to wildlife. It doesn't matter if you’re a first time gardener with only a small space on your patio for containers or if you are an expert gardener with acres to plant. If you take the challenge and turn your yard, garden or outdoor spaces into a habitat for wildlife consider becoming a certified wildlife Habitat with National Wildlife Federation.

*Forb: A broad-leaved herb other than a grass, especially one growing in a field, prairie, or meadow

Water Lilies in a Water Garden

I had my first water lily bloom in our backyard pond. I enjoy our pond but it does take a certain amount of upkeep. Now that our pond is established I usually just have to worry about cleaning filters and adding water. On occasion I need to add some algaecide but the UV filter is a great help controlling algae.
A water garden opens up a new world of planting and landscaping possibilities. A pond can be a point of interest or provide a soothing sound in your garden. You can start small, with a hollowed-out stone that catches rainwater or jump right in with a half-acre pond that has water lilies, fish and a fountain.
Before building your water garden, it is best to do a little homework. Unlike regular gardening, where you can bungle your way through almost any trial and start fresh the following year, a water garden often involves a greater investment of time and money.

A natural-looking water garden should have sloped sides with planting terraces that step down toward the deepest area of the pond. Remember:

· Place in a location that receives at least 5 hours of sunlight a day.
· Avoid low spots or areas that accumulate runoff.
· Don't put the garden under large trees.
· Find a level spot.
· Provide easy access to electrical power and fresh water

My pond is fishless at the moment thanks to a snowy egret but fish are a nice addition to a pond. You don’t have to start out with expensive Koi. Our small pond of 250 gallons supports Comets with no problem. We’ve had 6 at one time and they grew to about 18”. They eat algae, tadpoles, and mosquito larva so I only supplemented their diet with pond fish food.

Pot Some Plants
Although your water garden will have a few floaters, you will need to pot up other varieties of aquatic plants before sinking them in the water container. Use sturdy plastic or terra cotta pots. Those black plastic pots that regular nursery plants come in can also be used - and they're free. Water plants must be grown in high-quality topsoil or potting soil made specifically for water gardens. Never use a commercial potting mixture. It's too light for aquatic planting.

Beauty in a barrel
You don’t have to dig a hole in your backyard to have a water garden. A barrel water garden is perfect for inexperienced gardeners or gardeners with space limitations. Start by purchasing a sturdy whiskey barrel that has been cut neatly in half, sits steadily on its base and has tight metal hoops. Scrub inside and out thoroughly, then wire-brush and repaint the hoops. Be sure to use marine grade paint if you decide to paint the barrel.
You can also buy a preformed plastic liner or PVC pond liner cut-to-fit from a gardening center or the gardening section of a home improvement store. Some ready-made barrel liners are even available with a drain near the top as an overflow in rainy weather.

Add a few fish to your water garden for extra appeal. Guppies, mollies, swordtails, mosquito fish and small gold fish are commonly available and live happily in a small container. These little fish not only add interest, they help keep plants healthy by eating aphids, mosquitoes, and other insect pests.

A Garden Pond

I haven’t forgotten about writing but have been very distracted taking care of a new puppy. This got me to wondering if this new lab puppy will be as fascinated by our pond as our older lab was when we first built our pond. I had wanted a pond for many years and my husband finally got on board and we put in a pond and waterfall using a pre-formed shell in April 2005. Here is some of the things we learned building our pond. First build a pond about twice the size you think you want! As soon as we were finished we wished we had made ours bigger. Second a waterfall will help mask traffic noise but only if you put it close enough to your sitting area. We put our pond near the back of our yard so we could see it better but this makes it harder to hear the cascade. Third I’d reconsidered the waterfall because we have made the waterfall over several times for different reasons. We had tree roots grow into the waterfall and suck water from the pool, the “Hill” created for the waterfall weir sunk over time twice. I think I’d skip the waterfall if we built another in this yard. Our yard is so flat it was a challenge to make it “blend” into the landscape. Fourth A small pond needs more maintenance than a larger one so invest in a UV filter to help control algae. Our first year we battled algae growth constantly and bought the UV filter the second year and wow what a difference!

Over the years this waterfall has been home to Comet fish; a hardy Goldfish type that is suitable for cold-water aquariums and garden ponds, assorted frogs, and the flagstones with crevices are homes to many cold-blooded wildlife like skinks and lizards. But best of all the sound attracts birds to the yard that are looking for water. Then they discover food from feeders and plants and places to nest. We also get the occasional opossum drinking from the pond and fish eating birds have found a meal of Comet fish once or twice. Our older Lab Lucy used to try and swim in the pond until plants took over some of the space. Overall we enjoy the pond and would build it again.