6. Naturalising the edges of the Pond:
The edges of the pond on two sides had to be quite narrow due to an existing path and a previous small pool which we wanted to keep as a bird bath later; so using grass turves made it more firm as the roots were already well grown to hold the soil etc together. They are quite easy to cut to shape with an old bread knife and after a week or so leaving the grass to grow it began to appear “natural”. Pebbles and cobbles were added on one of the corners and along one side, next to the future bog-garden, to give a small sort of beach appearance. Under the grass and pebbles a small ‘valley’ was cut to let any water over-spill run into the bog-garden, keeping it soggy and wet. Just before this was done we were pleased to see one of the frogs from elsewhere in the garden swimming in the new pond, diving to the bottom of the abyss – result!
The edges of the pond on two sides had to be quite narrow due to an existing path and a previous small pool which we wanted to keep as a bird bath later; so using grass turves made it more firm as the roots were already well grown to hold the soil etc together. They are quite easy to cut to shape with an old bread knife and after a week or so leaving the grass to grow it began to appear “natural”. Pebbles and cobbles were added on one of the corners and along one side, next to the future bog-garden, to give a small sort of beach appearance. Under the grass and pebbles a small ‘valley’ was cut to let any water over-spill run into the bog-garden, keeping it soggy and wet. Just before this was done we were pleased to see one of the frogs from elsewhere in the garden swimming in the new pond, diving to the bottom of the abyss – result!
7. The pyramid net:
We bought a net, which is adjustable to different sizes of pond, to cover it during autumn and winter when leaves are falling from nearby trees and shrubs etc. Having had a small pond in the past we knew that clearing them from the surface water can be a real bind and if you leave them to sink to the bottom then they can foul the water as they rot. A few leaves are probably not so bad as it’s going to provide detritus feeders at the bottom of the pond some nutrition (naturally!). I cut a couple of 15 cm lengths of plastic guttering to place as little tunnels under the bottom sides of the netting, allowing frogs to enter and leave the pond. We had noticed a fox and various birds coming to the pond for a drink so we made sure to leave a dish of water for them while the net was up.
For more ideas about gardening with wildlife in mind - plus a great story to go with it - click this link to:
SO WHAT'S NEXT!
We bought a net, which is adjustable to different sizes of pond, to cover it during autumn and winter when leaves are falling from nearby trees and shrubs etc. Having had a small pond in the past we knew that clearing them from the surface water can be a real bind and if you leave them to sink to the bottom then they can foul the water as they rot. A few leaves are probably not so bad as it’s going to provide detritus feeders at the bottom of the pond some nutrition (naturally!). I cut a couple of 15 cm lengths of plastic guttering to place as little tunnels under the bottom sides of the netting, allowing frogs to enter and leave the pond. We had noticed a fox and various birds coming to the pond for a drink so we made sure to leave a dish of water for them while the net was up.
For more ideas about gardening with wildlife in mind - plus a great story to go with it - click this link to:
SO WHAT'S NEXT!
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